The Cloak
by The Forrest of Fanfic
Summary: A crime boss of a secret organisation is hidden in plain sight as he puts his plans into action. Camelot is different to the one known by most and it is in danger from a sly foe. Elsewhere, the young warlock's journey to Camelot is intercepted by bandits and that act in a chain reaction of many which started years ago ultimately stir Merlin in a different direction. Merlin AU.
1. Castles In The Air

**AN:**

 **Hey guys! Hope you enjoy this story because I've literally spent a year on it! AJsRandom gets props for being my beta and doing my cover photo. You are a saint, thank you so much to her and dealing with my terrible punctuation and grammar :)**

 **Do you want this fanfiction updated weekly, daily or all in one go? Comment or inbox me!**

 **Okay Enjoy!**

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The sun rose high into the middle of the light blue sky, not a single cloud could be seen in the vastness of the area above. The white tops of the jagged mountains in the east could barely be seen in the distance and the green hills of the west rolled in waves just like the sea.

A majestic castle stood regally in the middle of the grand setting, towering above it. The castle of Camelot was a mighty and powerful sight where anything was possible for the common man. Flags sporting the Pendragon crest stood tall and Knights marched through the kingdom as protectors of the people and keepers of the peace.

Inside the castle walls, past the guards, the knights and the flags the lower town bustled with people. The peasants of the lower town hurried their way through the market to get their hands on the freshest bread and the ripest fruit. Their children stayed at home not daring to leave despite the beauty of the day.

The shop owners bellowed and bantered as they sold both trinket and food to any passing person who took an interest in their wares. However, they gripped their money a little tighter and kept it out of sight from prying eyes and nimble fingers.

The nobles strode through the middle of the town smiling knowingly as the paupers bowed their heads in respect to their superiors. Yet their smiles would falter as they watched for movement in the narrow alleyways. Their servants and maids trailed behind them, heads permanently bent down signifying their obedience to their masters. However both master and servant feared the walk home tonight.

Every single person did what was expected of them every single day except one rebellious royal and her timid maidservant.

Morgana Pendragon, the Princess of Camelot, and Guinevere Leodegrance, her maidservant, strolled side by side, arm in arm, trading smiles and laughs like the best friends they were.

A ray of light cut through an opening in a silk curtain. A man peeked through and quietly snarled in disgust as he watched the Princess break propriety with a maid, the daughter of a blacksmith no less. It was unspeakable. A friendship forged with someone of the lower class taught them they could be equal to those above them –this could not be tolerated in his perfect world.

He let the curtain fall so the light was cut off, allowing darkness to consume the chamber once more. Shadows stopped any sort of feature from becoming obvious to anyone in the room who looked directly at him. A sly smile tugged at his lips as he watched the man who stood at the door. His arms lay behind his back and eyes never made contact. Only true obedience could be tolerated.

"Wait until the moon rises. That way Miss Leodegrance will be but another unfortunate murder in the night. The Princess will suspect nothing of an intervention." The underling nodded and left. The only sound heard was the door clicking shut. Silence fell.

He heard the other man in the room shuffled uncomfortably in his chair. "I do not think this would be wise." The man in shadow did not bother to suppress his chuckle at the pitiful sound of the once mighty man's voice.

"I assure you that this is the right choice; she has flaunted propriety and therefore her place in Camelot. She must learn such connections cannot be made." He smirked as he watched the red stone glow brightly around the man's neck.

Then, as if nothing happened at all, the other man continued to stare blankly at nothing.

Elsewhere, on the training fields, battalions of knights trained and sparred for the day they might be called to war. Sir Leon, Captain of the Guard peered across the training fields to see the very best of them all. Prince Arthur, an expert of the highest calibre in swordsmanship and other forms of combat. He calculated each blow and coordinated them to defeat his opponent in the quickest way possible..

"Arthur!" Leon called. He grinned with pride as Arthur floored yet another opponent. Leon had trained Arthur since he was just a boy and it didn't take long until Arthur had surpassed him.

"Sir Leon, what is it?" The Prince asked barely out of breath.

"I believe we should talk about the missing people sire, the children especially," he whispered. People had been disappearing for a very long time but only now had it become enough of a problem for King Uther and his personal advisor to take notice.

"I have a theory about that, Leon." Arthur sheathed his sword and turned to face him directly. "I think someone is trying to make a lot of money. Slaves will go for a good price, especially if they are healthy children." Leon winced slightly as he thought about all those children being put to work as labourers.

"With the recent thefts of precious jewellery that theory might just be correct. Unfortunately that would mean that the jewellery has been sold and the children taken out of the Kingdom and out of our jurisdiction." The Prince growled and swung at a punching bag.

Leon turned as something caught his eye. He quickly nudged his Prince to follow his gaze. Arthur watched in annoyance and worry as his sister and maidservant once again beat propriety with a big stick. "Damn it. She's going to get Gwen fired from her serving duties." The Prince jogged up to his sister and called her name.

Both Princess and servant turned upon hearing Morgana's name being yelled out. "Ah Arthur, how are you this fine morning? Oh and look, Gwen, he has managed to wear his armour the right way round today, aren't you all grown up now?" Morgana teased as she tugged on his cheek. Gwen did her best to cover a giggle which Arthur was grateful for.

"Oh hardy ha you are just so humorous," Arthur took a quick look around them before moving forward so they could hear him whisper. "Listen, I know that you two are close. But if our father, or worse, our uncle saw you anything could happen to Gwen." He had tried to warn them before about hiding their friendship but Morgana would not back down. He didn't know how Gwen coped with Morgana's stubbornness. He almost respected Gwen for it.

"Arthur, I do not care what father thinks and if he still wants to spend what little time he has with his daughter and son then he will not do anything to Gwen. As for Uncle Agravaine, he has no control over what I do. He is but a lord." With those sharp words his sister turned on her heel and stormed away. Gwen bowed and quickly left to catch up to her mistress.

"I hope Morgana is right about that, for Gwen's sake if not her own," Arthur muttered as he trudged back to the training fields. He felt rather defeated.

Meanwhile, the Princess and maid entered Morgana's chambers and she vented to her only true friend in Camelot. Whilst she mingled with the noble women of the court she found them all bland and boring. The worst part was that they were snobs and boot lickers who would do anything to elevate their own status.

"How dare he warn me about who I choose to be friends with? I mean why should I have to hide my best friend from the world? And as for my father, what can he do?" Morgana snarled as she paced angrily up and down her chambers.

Gwen smoothed out the sheets of her mistress's bed.

"As King, I believe he can do whatever he pleases," Gwen stated rather flatly.

Morgana sighed and sat in front of her vanity and threaded her fingers through her long black locks nervously. "Yes, but, he wouldn't do that. Would he Gwen?" Morgana looked at her pleadingly through the mirror.

"It is not my duty or place to know the King's mind." Gwen had dodged the question and Morgana didn't blame her. Neither actually wanted to know the answers to her questions.

"He never spends time with Arthur and me anymore. Instead, he sends his lap dog Agravaine to give us his excuses. They could be anything from paper-work concerning the Kingdom or sorcerers that need punishing. He just doesn't have time for his children." Morgana said. Gwen decided plat the Princess's hair and Morgana felt the tension slowly release as she completed each plat. She exhaled deeply.

"We can only hope that the King doesn't have time to persecute his daughter's maid." Morgana hummed in response as they lapsed into comfortable silence.

Morgana smiled slightly as she turned her head to see the plat which fell perfectly down her spine. "Have you heard anything of the young girl that dissapeared last week? Didn't you know her?" She didn't mean to pry but Gwen had been looking so glum lately.

"Her name was Abigail." Her maid recalled wistfully. "A sweet girl, only twelve last Samhain, but she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. No one has been found since it started a year ago. I doubt Abigail will be a different story." A stray tear ran down her smooth chocolate skin as Morgana brought her into a tight hug.

"Maybe it will change, one day is all it takes for everything to change Gwen. You just need hope." Morgana had begun to lose hope herself but she would not because to do so would mean giving up. Morgana refused to give up.

As the Princess consoled her friend a young man trekked through the forests that led to Camelot. His face appeared childlike, his sharp cheekbones stood out against the evening sun, and his ears made the boy look strangely like a mouse. His bag made of cow hide hung loosely off one shoulder and his right hand gripped a plain white staff. The boy stared in awe and amazement at the sheer magnificence of the castle. He grinned from cheek to cheek but decided he should make camp as the sun began to dip behind the hills in the west.

Once he collected his firewood, the young stranger looked around him quickly. Then all of a sudden, his eyes glowed like honey and flames sprung to life. The boy smiled in pride of his achievement before he sat in front of the fire to keep himself warm.

Unexpectedly, men on horses came out from behind the trees and bushes and circled the boy's little encampment. They wore dark clothing and had covered their faces. He knew they must be bandits.

"Give us whatever money you carry and you'll be spared." The leader, the boy assumed, got off of his horse and stood with his palm open waiting to receive his payment.

"I carry no money," The boy said plainly, not one bit fazed by the bandits that surrounded him.

"What's your name, boy?" One of the rougher ones growled out. He stepped off of his horse and his three compatriots followed, so now all five stood above him.

"Merlin," he stated simply.

"Well, M _er_ lin, we'll have to take your possessions instead, including that staff of yours. It looks ever so fancy with its posh scripture." The bandit went to grab it but his hand hovered over the staff as if waiting for a reaction.

"I really wouldn't touch anything. Get back on your horses and leave whilst you still have the chance." The bandits completely missed the sincerity and deep seriousness in Merlin's voice as they laughed at his threats.

"I think I'll take my chances M _er_ lin." The bandit tried to take the staff but as soon as his fingers brushed the staff Merlin's eyes shone a pure gold and the bandit flew backwards.

Before any of the bandits had the chance to unsheathe their swords Merlin called the staff in to his hand and used it to pole-vault to the leader, knocking him out cold. Swiftly Merlin twirled the staff around to hit another bandit in the stomach before moving it back around to knock him in the head. The other two bandits charged at him at once. Their swords were drawn but Merlin simply raised his hand. They both flew back and were immediately knocked unconscious.

Merlin ran speedily to the leader's horse and took out all of the bandit's possessions - which were no doubt all stolen - before he replaced them with his own. Whilst rummaging around the bandit's possessions, Merlin picked up a soft cloak, it was softer than his bed back at home and he marvelled at it. It was pitch black and something about it made him put it on and raise the hood over his head. It just felt right.

Merlin also slipped a few pouches of gold in the other side of the saddle before taking the saddles off the other horses and letting them escape into the forest.

With great haste Merlin leapt on to the horse before galloping rapidly through the dark forest towards the great city behind the tree line. He missed the two druids amongst the unconscious bandits who watched as the young sorcerer rode into the distance.

"The tides of destiny have been changed and Emrys is on a very different path." The younger-looking druid worriedly looked to his elder beside him

"Then we must hope that he makes his choices with accuracy and haste, for this path rests on Merlin's choice in the end." Then, just as the bandits began to regain consciousness, the two druids disappeared back into the woods.

Back in the castle Morgana sat up in her bed fidgeting a little with the lining of the covers. She hadn't had a nightmare for a while but her fear never once wavered because showed the strangest and scariest of things.

"Here you go milady." Gwen handed Morgana a vial of liquid which Gaius had prescribed for her since she'd come to the castle years ago. Sometimes it worked, other times it did not and those times Morgana wished it did. "Will there be anything else milady?" Her maidservant looked on worriedly but Morgana never enjoyed being fussed over, so she shook her head and declined.

"Gwen, you may return home now. Your father must hate me. I keep you in the castle till the late hours of the night. Go and be with him." Morgana sighed and tucked herself in.

"No, Morgana, he thinks you're a saint actually, treating me as well as you do." Gwen smiled down at the royal she called friend and bid her goodnight before she blew out the candle on the desk and quietly crept out the door.

The dark-skinned servant quietly travelled through the many hallways of the castle, nodding toward her fellow servants and maids whose masters and mistresses were not as lenient as her own.

Guinevere recalled the warning Prince Arthur had given her and Morgana. It made her increasingly concerned about her relationship with her mistress. She would love to continue being a friend to Morgana but with the King and Lord Agravaine around that seemed more dangerous than not. Many nobles did not like the closeness that the two of them shared but Morgana simply ignored them. Unfortunately her friend didn't seem to realise that Gwen didn't have the kind of protection she had as the Princess of Camelot.

As she stepped out of the castle, Gwen looked out into the night. The stars seemed especially beautiful and bright tonight, maybe it was a sign. She doubted it though. She offered tea to the knights who stood guard at the door and as always they declined for fear of looking lazy. She nodded understandingly and had almost turned away when she noticed a figure on a horse.

Almost no one arrived at Camelot at night but it was probably nobody important, at least, no one she would have to associate with. Gwen found herself in the company of her mistress or father most days but it never bothered her. She enjoyed her simple life; it felt just right for a simple girl.

Gwen knew better than to dawdle out in the open at night, especially these days. She moved briskly towards the hut she shared with her father, Tom the blacksmith. She could hear footsteps behind her and she hastily quickened her pace in fear of those who followed her.

Sweat had begun to cover her brow and her fingers became fidgety as she nervously tugged the lining of her dress. Her breath shuddered every so often and she made a silent prayer to anybody brave enough to help her. She heard heavy footsteps and leather rubbing against bodies in the silence of the night.

Suddenly a man with a horrible smirk sauntered from the shadows and blocked her path home. She turned to see three more men who all wore the same blood-curdling feature on their faces.

Gwen's hands shook as she realised what was about to happen to her. Tears fell freely from her eyes as they came closer and closer.

"Please don't hurt me," she pleaded but they didn't listen. One of them grabbed her arm and she screamed for help. A few people came out of their huts, but one look from her captors sent them back into the false safety of their homes.

"No! Gwen!" She heard her father yell. He ran outside and Gwen shouted for him to stop, to keep himself safe indoors. But before Tom could reach her, the other three men took to beating him non-stop. She cried out for them to stop but she lost her voice as she watched the man in front of her pull out a dagger. Gwen closed her eyes and thought of how she would be with her mother after this was all over.

"Leave them alone!" A male voice boomed. Her eyes flew open to see a person wearing a hooded cloak that he wore came around his sides and covered most of his body. Gwen stared in shock as the three men surrounded him and unsheathed their swords.

"You picked the wrong kind of people to pick a fight with, stranger," one of them spat out. The others chuckled darkly in agreement. The cloaked person stayed silent and only the faint sound of the wind could be heard.

All of a sudden, all three men tried to stab him but the cloaked man ducked only to whip out a staff from under his cloak and jab one of them in the stomach before moving behind him and readying his staff in front of him defensively.

"You'll regret that." The three of them said in unison but the stranger did not reply to their threat.

The biggest of the three charged at him whilst the other two moved to the side. Gwen looked on, worried, but still couldn't move with the dagger so close to her neck. The cloaked figure blocked a blow from the larger man, which momentarily knocked him off balance. He then blocked strikes from the other two before moving back further.

"You thought you could just come 'ere and stop us? Ha, you aren't as tough as I thought you was going to be." The three laughed in agreement whilst the cloaked man steadied himself on his staff.

Gwen watched as the hooded figure stood tall and she could just about see his knuckles whiten around his staff in the moonlight. Faster than she could comprehend, he struck one of them on the head and knocked him out. The staff spun in his hand and the last two men tried to strike at him but were disarmed instead. He quickly hit one of them in the stomach. Gwen cried out in warning but the figure turned to a fist in the face.

He dropped his staff and the two men quickly took to beating him. Gwen tried to cry out for him but the cold of the dagger was moving ever closer to her skin. The maid could only watch in horror as the two men hit him over and over whilst the cloaked man flailed and tried to cover himself.

"It's time you learn!" The man with the dagger shouted. "You don't cross us." His smirk made Gwen want to vomit.

Suddenly, the two men flew into a building and the hooded man stumbled back up. His staff sped into his hand without a word. She was fixated by his eyes though, such golden purity.

"Magic," she whispered.

Abruptly, Gwen's captor forced her to his chest. Before she could make a move, he brought his cold dagger to her throat. She dare not move for fear of being killed there and then.

"Listen 'ere, y- you." She allowed herself a smile at his stuttering. "I've got a job to do and the b- boss says that she has to die, so d- die she will. You understand? It's just business." The cloaked figure said nothing and Gwen almost thought he would simply nod his head and leave.

Just then, his eyes flared golden and Gwen felt heat rise from the handle of the dagger against her skin. The man dropped it and screamed out in pain. She twisted out of his grasp and ran to her father but not before she saw her saviour raise his hand. Her potential killer flew back through the air and landed with a thud on the ground.

"Gwen," her father managed to cough out. She leant down to help him back on his feet before she turned with the intent to thank the cloaked stranger only to find him gone.

Maybe Morgana was right, just one day could change everything. As she led her battered and bleeding father back inside their small hut, Gwen hoped that today was the day everything changed.


	2. Finding A Job

Abruptly, Merlin was awoken from his slumber soaked in water. His breath laboured, he looked around him to see that he had accidently slept in the stables alongside his horse after saving that girl last night. He hadn't really seen her but from what he did see he knew that she was pretty. He hoped that they would meet in Camelot. He doubted it though.

"Ah, you're awake," a voice said and several people laughed. Merlin saw four knights clad in armour. He thought it best to not fight them, although verbal abuse would do him just fine. Merlin flinched as his hand brushed his eye. He had almost forgotten the beating he took from those men last night; he should have been more careful. "Getting into tavern fights?" A blonde knight joked, unconcerned.

"Something like that, prat." The unexpected insult seemed to put off the knight a little. Merlin figured that he was your typical noble that Will always talked about, all high and mighty, looking down on the peasant folk.

"You cannot address me like that," the blonde knight said.

"Well, considering that I was only sleeping and instead of acting decently and shaking me awake or calling for me to wake up, you decided - like the prat you clearly are - to chuck cold water over me." Merlin stood. He noticed that he had a few inches on the knight but he also saw how much stronger he looked. He knew his magic definitely wasn't an option and his staff hung from his saddle bag a few feet away. "I think after acting like that I may address you however I please."

The knight looked a little infuriated as some of his friends chuckled. Merlin grinned but suddenly he found himself on the floor, restrained by knights. "Summon the court. He will stand trial."

"Whatever for?" Merlin watched as the blonde knight pulled out several pouches of gold and the cloak he had worn last night as well as his staff. The knight seemed to look closely at the symbol, trying to inspect it or to remember something.

The carving looked like the druidic symbol, the triskelion, Merlin thought it was called. A dragon's head took the place of the swirls in the middle of each circle. His father had left it for him when he had to leave, his mother said. He would not part with it and had learned how to use it properly at a young age.

"These pouches of gold cannot be yours. If they were, your clothes would be finer quality. This cloak is silk!" he exclaimed. "No peasant can afford such a thing. As for this staff…it cannot be yours." Merlin had just about enough of this clot-pole's attitude.

"Listen, okay, the gold isn't mine. Bandits attacked me on my way here from Ealdor-"

"That's in Essetir," one of the knights interrupted.

"You're pretty smart! Are you the intelligent one?" Merlin questioned sarcastically. But all he got in response was a clap over the head from one of the knights.

"You will show respect to your betters." _Betters?_ They didn't act much better than he. For one, he could beat them all in a fight with a one move, and for another, they were all asses.

"Ow, calm down." Merlin had suffered enough last night and didn't need it today as well. "Anyway, knights of Essetir were patrolling through and killed the bandits. I took a horse, yes, I took gold, of course I did and yes, I may have taken a cloak. But come on, they were probably already stolen property." He made direct eye contact with the blonde one. "I am poor; I have been my whole life. What was I to do?"

"Was the staff stolen too?" The knight enquired.

"No. My father left it for me when he had to leave my pregnant mother." Merlin felt bitter about how his father had to leave him. Maybe if his mother explained his father's identity then he might understand but she refused to say anything.

"I believe you." Perhaps they were getting somewhere, Merlin thought. "However, stealing, no matter who you stole from, is still a crime. The trial will still go ahead." Or maybe he had too many rocks rolling around in his skull.

"It happened in Essetir. I cannot be punished under Camelot law." Merlin understood the law, his mother definitely did not raise an idiot - so she repeatedly stated - and Merlin knew he was right.

"I am the Prince of Camelot; I may do as I please. Bring him to the throne room." Merlin cursed under his breath. He gritted his teeth as they not-so-gently hauled him away. He didn't want to let on to the knights that he had sustained injuries. It would raise too many questions.

Whilst the young warlock was being dragged to trial, the dark-skinned maidservant made her way into her mistress's chambers to wake her up. Gwen glanced over Morgana and she happily noted that she seemed at peace, which meant she hadn't had a dream last night. Although retelling the events to Gaius whilst he healed her father felt as if she was in a dream of her own.

Gently Guinevere shook the young Princess and softly called out her name. Morgana groaned telling her maid that she was indeed awake. Gwen strolled over to the curtains and drew them back, allowing light into the room. She turned to see Morgana still not up and the maid shook her head and smiled before began preparing a suitable dress for her mistress.

"Come on now, Morgana. You must attend court in half an hour." She heard a muttered curse from behind her and Gwen could only laugh as she brought out her friend's favourite dress. It was light green, with long sleeves and golden patterns woven into the fabric, much less revealing than the other dresses she wore to feasts.

"You know, sometimes I wish I wasn't the princess of Camelot," Morgana drearily yawned out. She slowly made her way out of bed and behind the changing board.

"It must be so stressful, Morgana. All the dresses, the wealth, the perfumes we can't forget about the constant drabble of men that fall at your feet," Gwen stated while she smoothed out the covers of the four-poster bed.

"It _is_ Gwen. I have to pick the dresses, choose what I buy, pick the best perfume and choose which hearts to break." Gwen chuckled as she helped Morgana with the laces of her bodice. "Has there been any word about Abigail yet?" Morgana asked, concerned.

"No." Gwen's laughing stopped. She moved to the window whilst her friend sat down at the vanity. The servant looked down at the courtyard and watched as the peasants and nobles walked through, seemingly carefree. But they were all wary. Gwen had almost been taken last night, just like Abigail, but luckily that man saved her. She hoped he was here to stay.

She jumped at a sudden touch and looked up to see Morgana looking worriedly at her. "I'm sorry if I frightened you Gwen. Are- are you okay?" This was one of the reasons why Gwen loved Morgana like a sister. She cared about her and all people in the lower classes. She thought Arthur did too but he just didn't show it. Men and their ways confused her to no end.

"Yes. Yes my lady, I'm fine." One glance from Morgana and she knew that her friend had seen through her lie. "No. Not really," Gwen sighed as all of the events of last night came back. Watching her father get beaten, the knife to her throat, her saviour, it was all too much and Gwen nearly collapsed. Luckily, Morgana caught her and led her over to the bed.

"Tell me what's wrong? Did something happen on your way home?" Gwen began to calm down as Morgana rubbed soothing circles on the back of her hands.

Once she had collected herself Gwen re told the events of yesterday like she had done with Gaius not two hours ago. At the end of it, it felt good to tell her best friend and she sighed heavily before she got back up and walked over to the door.

"Come on, Morgana. We will be late." Gwen put on a smile as she wiped a tear from her eye. Morgana came over slowly and rested a hand on each of her shoulders.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay here and talk about it some more? This cloaked stranger seems quite mysterious." _That he did_ Gwen thought. But he'd saved her life and that of her father so she felt indebted to him. If only she could find him.

"No. I have said all I needed to and now you must attend court. I hear Prince Arthur caught somebody stealing. Apparently he is also soaking wet." Gwen looked around for a towel and put it over her shoulder.

"Oh Gwen, I didn't know bad boys were your type." Morgana teased. Heat ran to her cheeks as they left the chambers and Gwen knew that her friend would not let her forget this moment.

When they entered the throne room Gwen did see a young boy in the middle of the throne room with Arthur. He was indeed soaking wet and shivering. He also had a black eye and seemed to be in pain.

"Arthur! He is shivering for god's sake! Gwen pass him the towel, please." Gwen did as she was told and knelt down to hand him the towel. "Gaius, can you treat him when this is over?" Morgana asked their court physician.

"Of course I can, milady," he replied formally.

When Gwen gazed into his face, their gazes locked. The maid thought she saw recognition in his eyes but she had definitely not seen him before. He looked very pale, not in a sick way but naturally. His eyes were ocean blue and he was strangely handsome.

"Gwen, you can come back now." She heard the amused tone in Morgana's voice. She would have fun with this for a while.

Before she moved, the boy grabbed her hand. Warmth rushed to her cheeks as she looked at his piercing gaze once more. "Thank you," he whispered and let go of her hand.

"You're welcome." Gwen speedily made her way back to her grinning mistress and stood behind her seat.

"What was that about?" Morgana whispered.

"He said 'thank you'." She whispered back but before Morgana could reply with something horribly crude, Agravaine walked into the throne room.

Agravaine marched into the throne room. He saw his nephew, Prince Arthur, looking rather pleased with himself as a man with a towel around him knelt at his fee. He was clearly shivering.

Agravaine took his seat on the main throne in the King's place; he looked down to see the man was nothing more than a boy. He appeared to be a peasant as well.

"Arthur, why is there a shivering peasant in the middle of your father's throne room?" He stared inquisitively between the prince and the boy.

"He was caught stealing, Lord Agravaine." Agravaine looked down at the peasant who defiantly returned his gaze. The boy didn't seem like much; he was skinny, scrawny and rather strange looking.

"What did he steal, Arthur?" He watched as the items were shown. Seven pouches of gold, a silk cloak and one staff. Agravaine focused on the staff and gestured for the knight holding it to bring it forward.

"I didn't steal that staff - it was my fathers. Yes, the gold I stole, the cloak I stole but the staff is mine. Please, it is the only thing of my father's that I own." The boy pleaded, but Agravaine paid him no heed. Instead he chose closely examine the item. His eyes widened at the symbol, _it couldn't be_ , he thought. The house of Ambrosius.

Agravaine schooled his expression. The peasant couldn't know of his heritage. The idiot might go running off to find his father and then Camelot would be in trouble. That would be detrimental.

He definitely couldn't kill him. No, no, that could be horrendous for Agravaine's self preservation if he really was his father's son.

"What is your name, boy, and why do you believe it a good idea to steal whilst in the borders of Camelot? Its King is not a soft one; you should be glad he is not here in person." The boy didn't say anything for a moment and a thick silence hung in the air.

"My name is Merlin. I am from Ealdor in Cenred's Kingdom; I was attacked there while on my way to Camelot. Bandits threatened me, told me to give them my money but I had none to give. They began beating me but luckily knights bearing the mark of Essetir killed them all and left just as quickly as had come. Like I told your Prince, I am poor, always have been, and I took advantage of the situation." Agravaine couldn't be sure whether or not that was a lie but it was out of Camelot's hands.

"I cannot charge you properly. If what you say is true then it is a problem for Essetir when you return. When are planning on doing so?" He looked pointedly at Merlin.

"I don't know. I am here to work as an assistant to your court physician, Gaius. He is a friend of my mother's." It was then that the gaze of the Lord switched to the old man.

"Is this true, Gaius?" With a swift nod from the physician he turned his attention back to Arthur and the accused.

"In courtesy to Essetir you will be sentenced." He really didn't need Cenred finding this boy. "My sentence is one month in jail but the possessions he took are his to keep. They must be kept under the eye of Gaius who I assume the accused will live with." Another nod from Gaius made his judgement certain "The gold he stole will be put in the vaults as property of Camelot." Agravaine was about to take his leave when Gaius spoke up.

"My lord, if I may be allowed to speak my mind?" Agravaine sat back on the throne and gestured for Gaius to go on. "I will not be able to provide for both myself and Merlin on my physician's wage. Maybe we need a more suitable sentence. Did Arthur not just fire his last servant?" Gaius inquired. Agravaine liked this idea.

"I did but – he is a criminal." Arthur spluttered which only made Agravaine smirk. This would let him keep an eye on this M _er_ lin to see if he really did know anything about his father.

"You're not exactly my idea of a great time, and your looks don't make up for it either," Merlin chuckled at his own joke. Agravaine glanced over to Morgana who was tried to stifle her laugh. He then peered at her servant with gritted teeth. He inwardly sneered at her presence in court.

"He is disrespectful." Agravaine agreed, but he still needed to keep an eye on the boy. "Well, you must teach him respect, dear nephew. Merlin is sentenced to manual labour as the Prince's manservant until both the Prince _and_ I are satisfied that he has paid his debt. Court is closed." A groan came from both Prince and peasant but the Lord quickly exited the room before anything further could be said.

Once the doors closed he called over his informant. "Watch the boy, Merlin. Make sure he knows nothing of his heritage. His staff bears the mark of Ambrosius." The informant staredat him with wide eyes but nodded rapidly before speeding away.

Merlin followed Gaius out of the throne room and all the way to his chambers. As Merlin walked in he looked around to see jars, bottles of chemicals, herbs and… _were those leeches?_ Merlin pitied the person who would have to clean that.

"Your room is just through that door but sit on this table for now, I need to treat you." Merlin propped himself up on the table whilst Gaius pottered around the room collecting bottles and jars of various sizes. Merlin looked over to the small stair case leading to a door and smiled. He had never had a door before. "So, you took a cloak?" Gaius enquired as he dabbed some sort of liquid over the bruise which caused Merlin to wince slightly.

"Yes, it looked nice." He tensed as Gaius applied pressure with a cream.

"The staff is your father's?" The old man stared at the symbol on the staff which sat propped against the wall.

"Yes, he left for me." Merlin really needed to ask his mother about his father because he was tired of not knowing. Even Agravaine seemed to know something about the staff.

"Are you any good with it?" Gaius moved over to it and twirled it around but accidently dropped it. On instinct Merlin held out his hand and the staff hovered above the floor before it flew to his hand.

"I'm alright but I have other talents at my disposal." He grinned. His mother had been writing letters to Gaius about his powers since they came to fruition. Gaius gave Merlin a pointed look and he put a finger to his lips. Merlin stayed quiet, unsure if Gaius was actually senile and age had claimed him. Just then footsteps could be heard running away from outside the door.

"I thought you would be followed here," Gaius said as a matter of fact.

"Wait! Why was I followed? I'm no one special, not really anyway," Merlin stated, worried.

"Don't worry about it, my boy, just watch what you say and do in Camelot. Things have become very different in the last few years," the old man spoke mysteriously. "So you saved Gwen last night then," he deduced and perked up a little. Merlin was shocked at Gaius's intelligence but his mother had always told him that Gaius was a man of science as well as healing. He was bound to be smart.

"I guess I did. What do you think about it?" Merlin wondered aloud. He didn't think he would actually consider putting on the cloak again but it seemed to call to him in an odd way.

"You're planning to go back out there? You must be mad, boy." Merlin sighed and rubbed his forehead with one of his hands. "You know, children, young men and women have been going missing, murders and such have been more of a reoccurring incident…" That was new information to Merlin. As far as he knew, apart from the persecution of sorcerers, Camelot seemed great. "Maybe you could make a difference. You've already saved Gwen, who knows who else you could save?"

"Does the King not do anything about this?" Merlin asked. He wondered why the ruler of a kingdom would allow these things to happen.

"The King has become somewhat of a recluse since Agravaine arrived." It all sounded rather shifty to Merlin but he had only been there two days.

"So how am I going to sneak out of the castle unnoticed to go fight crime?" Merlin wondered sceptically.

"Oh, I have just the thing!" Gaius tottered over to a large shelf of books and pulled a large leather-bound tome. "Try page three hundred, I think that might have what you're looking for." The old physician smiled mischievously. "Now off to bed with you, boy!" He shooed him away along with the book Gaius forced into his hands.

Merlin stepped into his bedroom. It was huge compared to his room at home. It even had a window! Merlin took off his bright blue neckerchief and kicked off his faded, leather shoes and threw his cloak and the book onto the bed before lying down on it. The mattress was really soft compared to his hard bed at home. He could get used to this.

Suddenly, he heard a woman's voice. As quick as a flash, Merlin stoodat the open window and looked down to see three men surrounding a helpless woman and her child. He grinned as he turned to look at the cloak draped on his bed.

Without wasting a second he grabbed the cloak, slipped on his shoes and draped the hood over his head. His cheeky grin beamed in the candlelight as he opened the book to page three hundred per Gaius's advice.

"That'll do nicely." Merlin whispered to himself. He read the words a couple times over and pronounced each word individually until he was ready to perform the spell. **"Bedyrne me! Astýre me þanonweard!"** In a swirl of magical winds Merlin had disappeared but the faded sounds of punches and groans could already be heard in the distance.


	3. The Cloak

Merlin shifted and turned as a voice whispered in his mind. Most of it sounded like jumbled prattle that Merlin couldn't make out in his hazy awareness, but one thing stood out above all.

 _Protect him… Protect him…Protect him…_

His mother had always said that dreams are amazing things. She believed that a dream could warn you against a coming danger or advise you on how to avoid it altogether. The only problem was that Merlin didn't know who "he" was or why "he" needed protecting.

 _Merlin…Merlin…Merlin…_

The voice sounded gruff and almost inhuman. He had never met anyone with such a rough tone and he didn't really want to meet the person who did. The call became louder and louder and louder…

"Merlin! Get up! You will be late for your first day at work!" Merlin bolted up and heard Gaius calling him. His recall of the dream dissipated as he glanced at the cloak with a wry smile.

"Not much happened last night. Just a few murderers and the odd thief," he said casually which earned him an inquisitive eyebrow from his mentor. "What is it?" The old man just chuckled and returned to the larger chamber.

"You are living a double life Merlin. It's very dangerous, especially when your other life is illegal." Gaius began tinkering away with his chemicals and Merlin read one of the bottles. It said 'Sleeping draft.' Merlin frowned in sympathy for that person. He used to have nightmares all the time as a kid because of his fear of being found and burned for his magic. To have them all the time must be horrible. "Merlin, are you listening?" His mentor snapped, making him jump up suddenly.

"Um sorry, I was miles away," he said sheepishly as Gaius rubbed his forehead with his hand and exhaled.

"I said that you have to distance yourself from the vigilante figure that you've become. You can't show anyone your skills with the staff. In fact, you should probably make sure no one sees the staff except when it's in the hands of the vigilante." Merlin looked through the door to his chambers; his eyes glowed gold and the door shut and locked.

"That problem's fixed. Anything else Gaius?" The young sorcerer quirked his eyebrow at Gaius and smirked.

"Yes, your magic is top secret. No one must know. It will endanger them and you. Make sure it stays between me and you, Merlin, like your other life. Now off to work with you." Gaius picked up an apple and made to bite into it when it flew out of his hand and into Merlin's. But before Gaius could reprimand him, the young servant ran out the door.

Merlin walked aimlessly through the castle, eventually realising he had no idea where Arthur's chambers were. The farm boy strolled through the halls looking at the many tapestries across the walls when he bumped into someone, two someone's actually. It was the girl he'd saved, the same one from his trial. Gwen, he had heard the other woman call her.

"Gwen," he instinctively said not really knowing where he wanted to go with that. Both women seemed quite amused by his inability to talk. "Sorry, uh, I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Oh no that is quite alright. You're the boy from the trial, right?" He nodded and looked up and saw a pair of emerald eyes look back at him. She was beautiful, way out of his league and noble women weren't really his type anyway. But still, she was just breathtaking. "I'm Morgana, by the way."

Merlin felt he should bow to her and dipped his head slightly. "I'm Merlin, milady," he muttered.

"Please, Morgana is fine. I hate the title, the attention, ah not so much." He grinned and laughed, noticing that propriety wasn't much of a worry for Morgana and Gwen.

"You must be going to Arthur's chambers, correct?" He nodded again. "Gwen, would you show him the way and maybe you can get to know each other more." Merlin didn't miss the suggestive wink that Morgana threw her maid but he didn't mind spending more time with Gwen.

"Okay then, Merlin, if you'll follow me." Merlin smiled secretly at the blush that crept up her cheeks. He had never been interested in women before but Gwen certainly piqued his interest. "So you're from Ealdor? What is it like?" She asked after a small lapse of silence.

"Oh, well it isn't really much. It is a small village on the outskirts of Essetir. We have a few crop fields, a couple of cows and the odd pig here and there." He started to miss it already but felt he could really build a life here. He already had a job, if you forget the part where it was actually a sentence of manual labour.

"It sounds rather peaceful." Merlin thought about how boring he'd always found it but with the combination of his magic and his best mate, Will, life became less so. They spent the rest of the walk in comfortable silence until Gwen stopped and gestured to a door which he imagined led to Prince Arthur. "Good luck," she said before she walked away.

 _That wasn't very promising._ Merlin thought.

Nevertheless, Merlin plastered on his best grin and strolled into the Prince's chambers. He hadn't expected what met his eyes. The floors were covered in clothes, the table had dishes with decaying food strewn across them and the smell was horrendous. He could already imagine his mother giving the person who made this mess a good talking to. Unfortunately, he wasn't his mother. Instead he walked over to the bed which held the crumpled form of the Prince in the middle of it.

Merlin had never woken a Prince before. Was there some sort of secret way to do it? If there was, Merlin didn't know it. So he simply drew the curtains and allowed the sun to invade the darkness in the chamber.

"Good morning sire!" He yelled cheerily. The sun had just risen and he watched in merriment as the people of Camelot went about their business in the streets. Merlin turned to see a very angry Prince staring back at him.

"Where is my breakfast?" Arthur demanded as he stretched. _Would some manners kill him?_ Merlin pondered.

"Probably in the kitchens." He smiled but it disappeared as the glare from the Prince intensified. "I'll fetch it, sire." Merlin turned on his heel but he stumbled slightly as his foot slipped on a trouser leg. He heard a groan from behind him and Merlin summoned all of his power to keep his mouth closed. "Sorry," he mumbled, and bowed before he left in search of the castle kitchens.

After several minutes of running around the castle in search of kitchens the servant came back with the Prince's breakfast.

"What took you so long?" Arthur barked at him. Strangely, Arthur was still not dressed but maybe he only dressed after breakfast. Merlin had no idea.

"I had to find the kitchens first, sire." Merlin politely replied as he set the tray down in front of the prat. "Why didn't you change whilst I was away, sire," he asked.

"Don't be stupid, Merlin. Who would help me change into my clothes and armour?" Merlin had seen armour before and thought it might need a second pair of hands to put on. But he knew from personal experience that dressing certainly didn't.

"Can you not dress yourself milord? If not, I could teach you," he teased as he began to stack the dishes from previous days to be taken to the kitchens.

"I'll have you know I can dress myself just fine, Merlin. Besides, I doubt you could teach a bird to fly." Arthur then got a horrible glint in his eye which Merlin didn't like. "Now for your chores. You will clean my chambers, make my bed, wash and polish the floor, clean my desk, take these plates back to the kitchens, wash my clothes, make my lunch then you will join me on the training field where you will sharpen my sword and polish my spare armour as well as help me train." That was a very long list and Arthur seemed to want most of it done before midday. Maybe his magic would come in handy whilst the Prince was elsewhere.

With that in mind Merlin nodded and began to clean the Prince's chambers.

It was later that day that an exhausted Merlin slaved away on Arthur's sword whilst he trained his knights in the art of mace combat. As Merlin sharpened the sword to the best of his ability, he watched with a small smile playing on his features, as Arthur took down three of his opponents. The Prince was indeed a very good fighter. Merlin had deduced quickly that the broad sword was his master's favourite because it allowed Arthur to use his overwhelming strength against his opponents. If only Merlin didn't have to hide his skill with a staff then he would ask to fight him.

"Is something on your mind there, Merlin?" The servant stood but knocked over several pieces of weaponry and armour as he turned. He was that Morgana and Gwen were front of him chuckling at his clumsiness. To his surprise, Morgana wore lightweight armour with a sword sheathed at her side.

"No, I was just watching Arthur train, milady." The three of them looked back at Arthur, who now wielded a staff. Arthur fought well, Merlin would give him that, but Merlin reckoned he could take him staff on staff.

"He fights well though I did beat him a lot when we were kids." Merlin snorted and laughed at the idea of Arthur beaten by a girl. "Think you could do better, Merlin?" Merlin shook his head but he turned as she unsheathed her sword.

"Honestly, milady, the sword is not my choice of weapon." Merlin smiled, thinking about how useless he was with a sword. Will used one a lot better than him but when Will tried to train him; Merlin just couldn't get the hang of it.

"So you have a choice of weapon?"

Merlin sighed "No- I was just saying that if I indeed did – I, well, if we spoke metaphorically that is – err what was the question?" The two women chuckled at his stumbling.

"Please, just choose the weapon you feel most comfortable with." She gestured to the table full of swords, daggers, staffs, and crossbows. "I'll be gentle." She smirked and Merlin exhaled, defeated, and trudged over to pick up the quarter staff.

"I should have known since you came to Camelot with a staff." Merlin smiled and took a more casual stance; hopefully he looked more inexperienced than he was.

"I don't feel comfortable fighting the Princess of Camelot." Merlin had asked around about Morgana's identity and they looked at him very strangely before telling him she was the Princess.

"Because you'll lose?" She laughed and Merlin looked over to Gwen who seemed very worried about him. Merlin knew he wouldn't but then he would blow his cover and people might associate him with the vigilante.

Merlin said nothing, instead taking the time to breathe and focus. The staff twirled in his hands as he began to move forward toward Morgana, flourishing it as he did so.

The Princess struck first, coming from above and Merlin blocked before Morgana turned to slice at his chest. He quickly stepped away and turned his staff vertically so it blocked her sword before he attacked from her top left. She expertly blocked that also. Merlin then tried to hit her right side only for her to block once again. He smirked and spun, then he heard a groan from behind his back. He swiftly turned around ready to strike her again but Morgana blocked just in time.

"So you are good. Gwen, didn't you say that cloaked man used a staff?" Gwen nodded and Merlin swallowed the lump in his throat. He had just been telling himself to not blow his cover and here Morgana had already connected him with the vigilante. "Maybe you're him." Now Merlin knew he had to lose.

Morgana struck from the side and he blocked rapidly but as she put more force into the sword he let the staff fall. Morgana turned to point her blade straight at his neck. "Or maybe I'm not," Merlin said as Morgana smiled in triumph.

"I didn't think you were anyway," Morgana teased with a hint of arrogance. She sheathed her sword and walked away. To his surprise, Gwen came up to timidly and Merlin thought she looked rather adorable.

"I thought you were amazing," she quietly complimented. Merlin could only grin. He hesitantly took one of her hands and placed a chaste kiss on her knuckles.

"Thank you, Guinevere." He chuckled as Gwen became red-faced before. She then muttered a "Good bye" and sped off to her smirking mistress.

"So you fight as well Merlin?" He whipped his head around to see Arthur looking rather pleased. The knights around him stared at him, mouths agape. "You can come and spar with me then, can't you?" Arthur picked up his own staff and Merlin inwardly groaned. He would have to lose every single fight to keep his identity hidden.

Later, Merlin rubbed his back and hissed as he brushed the bruise that resulted from being repeatedly hit there. It was his fault. He should have declined Morgana's offer or made himself look completely useless with a weapon. That would've stopped Arthur from deciding to train him with the knights. Luckily, it did mean they all thought he had some skill but wasn't an expert. That suited Merlin just fine.

At the moment, Merlin wasn't really listening to a council meeting that he'd had to attend with Arthur. He didn't see why he had to; Morgana was here without Gwen. Oh wait; he did see why- because Arthur was a total prat.

Suddenly the doors swung open and Agravaine strode into the council chambers with what looked like the King, judging by the crown. The King was an older man who had begun to grey, but his face put Merlin off. It was neither happy nor sad, excited neither angry, neither serious nor silly. Just blank. No one seemed to notice so maybe that was the King's natural expression but he doubted it.

"Good afternoon, father." Both Arthur and Morgana spoke in unison as they stood from their thrones. They retook their seats as the King sat down. Merlin watched as Agravaine stood slightly behind the King his face serious. But the perceptive servant didn't miss the slight smirk on his lips.

"The rate of kidnappings and murders has only gotten higher and we must decide how to protect the people of Camelot." Arthur stated and held eye contact with his father. However, Agravaine spoke in the King's place.

"The King and I have been working hard to think of a solution to this problem. He proposed that we completely surround the lower town with guards to make sure the offenders will be caught." On the surface that seemed like a good idea, but something seemed off to Merlin.

"But Lord Agravaine, we will lose guards in the castle if we do that," Morgana exclaimed, looking worried. Merlin shared a glance with Gaius; he looked just as wary as the Princess.

"May I suggest instead that we station guards at places in which the crimes happen more frequently? We could place three guards at the tavern, black-smith, tailor, and market stalls, and at the end of each main pathway." Merlin smiled. Arthur didn't look it, but when it came to strategy he was pretty damn smart. He conserved soldiers whilst covering the most likely places in which crimes had occurred and would therefore likely reoccur in the future.

"Arthur, you are young and impulsive. The criminals are smart. They have been doing this for a while and our efforts have been useless against them. But if we come out at full force they will have nowhere to run." The young sorcerer felt less trusting of Lord Agravaine as time passed. The King had said nothing the whole time he'd sat in the council chamber and that just seemed wrong.

Once council was over, Arthur bid his sister good evening and gestured for Merlin to follow him. Merlin waved at Morgana before following the prince out.

"Sire, why did you not push your guard placement idea further? I am no expert but it seemed a lot better than what Agravaine had put forward." Arthur turned with a hardened expression and Merlin recoiled slightly.

"Exactly, Merlin, you aren't an expert and Agravaine has years more experience than I. If he and the King think that they should encompass the lower town then that is what I shall order." The Prince marched through the halls and Merlin scurried behind, trying to keep up.

"I couldn't help but notice the King was rather quiet during council." Arthur stopped abruptly and Merlin was fortunate he didn't run straight into his back.

"Yes, he has been like that for a while but my uncle has helped in that respect." His voice sounded small, and vulnerable. Merlin couldn't help but prod him a little further.

"You don't think that maybe Agravaine has a hidden agenda?" Merlin spoke gently but it seemed that he may have gone a little too far.

"I don't know what you are suggesting, Merlin, but I strongly advise you to back down before I throw in the dungeons," Arthur said with a tone of warning.

"But-"

"I said, back down, Merlin!" Arthur shouted in his face and Merlin bowed his head and muttered an apology. "Get out of my sight. I will see you on the morrow when you have realised your place."

"Yes, sire." Merlin then left, trying to contain himself from throwing the idiot across the hallway. Arthur acted like a blind fool. Something was up and Merlin knew it.

Irritated, Merlin hastily made his way to the physician's chambers and swiftly opened the door only to slam it behind him and shout at the top of his lungs. "Arthur, you utter prat!"

"Merlin, you almost gave an old man a heart attack." Sheepishly, Merlin glanced up at Gaius who seemed a little shaken up.

"Sorry, Gaius. Arthur cannot see that Agravaine is up to something." Merlin threw himself on the bench in the middle of the room as Gaius brought over broth.

"What do you think he is up to?" Gaius questioned sipping at his own bowl of broth.

"I don't know," Merlin said between mouthfuls. "But whatever it is I reckon it will be a long term thing. No reason to be worried about it now. I just wish I could see what Agravaine was planning." Merlin sighed and grunted. "I need to find a way to hide from all the guards whilst I am out as the vigilante."

"It'll be in your book, my boy." Gaius gestured over to Merlin's room and smiled knowingly. The servant rushed over to his room, unlocked the door without a word and rushed back out with the leather bound spell tome. They began to flick through it until Gaius stopped at the heading "Perception spells".

"There. You need a perception spell. It does not make the person invisible but it forces others around them to look away from what the spell is used on. However abrupt movement and loud noises will break the spell." Merlin smiled to himself. This was perfect. "You must be stealthy, Merlin. No more clumsiness as the vigilante." Merlin nodded before he ran to his room and took his cloak and staff into the main chamber.

The warlock read the spell a few times before he pulled the hood of the cloak over his head and held the staff at his side. **"** **Áwende sé** **andgiet** **oþres"** Merlin felt the magic course through him. Light radiated from him, his cloak and his staff before it faded.

"I've never seen someone learn a spell as fast as you, Merlin - you really are something else." Merlin grinned in appreciation and thanked him before muttering the teleportation spell and disappearing in a tornado of wind.

Merlin stood on top of the bell tower in the middle of town. A silent protector hidden in plain sight, though the perception spell helped. The vigilante smiled as many looked up in his direction but none stared straight at him. The moonlight shone against him and Merlin took the time to gaze up at the stars which twinkled brightly in the night sky.

All of a sudden, a scream rang out and Merlin's head snapped up in the direction it came from. The sorcerer waited for the guards that now encompassed the lower town to mobilise on the scream, however, none moved. Not one even turned in the direction of the cry for help, they must've heard it. Somehow Merlin knew Agravaine was behind this.

Merlin jumped off the bell tower. His cloak opened wide and he glided down to the nearest hut. He ran and jumped across the small homes toward the yells of fear that only got louder. Merlin stared down from the roof of the blacksmith's forge and saw that three men surrounding a family across the street.

What _could_ they want with them?

"Give us the child!" _The child?_ Merlin had no idea what good a child would do them. He focussed on the family and saw the boy could only be ten or twelve at the most. "The boss wants lots of children so he can make plenty of money on the slave trade," one of them sniggered out and the three laughed evilly.

"Not if I have anything to do about it!" Merlin looked surprised as Gwen's father came out of the forge holding a sword. He limped, still clearly in pain, and Merlin knew he wouldn't make it out of this fight.

"You want a piece, old Tom? Because I know the boss has had an eye on your daughter. She should be dead." Merlin gripped his staff tighter and jumped from the roof to stand in front of Tom.

"Get back inside, Tom," Merlin ordered whilst he glared angrily at the three low lifes in front of him.

"You saved my little Gwennie's life." Merlin inwardly smirked at the nickname that he _definitely_ would not be teasing her with tomorrow. No… definitely not.

"Now I'm saving yours. Get back inside!" He shouted as the three charged at him forgetting the family they had threatened moments ago.

The first tried to strike Merlin from above and he blocked but before he could strike again the second man swung his sword and sliced Merlin's arm. He jumped back in haste and reached for his injured arm. He hardened his jaw his eyes glowed gold and sent the man flying. The last two looked shocked for a moment before charging with renewed vigour. Merlin kept on the constant defensive as he blocked strike after strike.

 _It'd be great if some soldiers turned up right about now_ Merlin thought sarcastically.

Merlin stood against a wall now and had nowhere to run. He quickly took in his surroundings but saw he was trapped. He couldn't teleport away because that would take too long. Magic wasn't an option because he was too weak from blood loss. He saw no way out.

The two goons smirked at each other before driving their swords forward. Merlin shut his eyes tight and threw his hands up to wait for the impact… but none came. He opened his eyes slightly to see the swords just millimetres away from his chest - but everything had stopped. The family paused mid-scream and Tom stood peering out of his forge. Time had stopped. No, time had slowed. He watched as the swords moved closer and closer at a snail's pace.

Merlin wasted no time and moved out of the way before he released the spell. The two swords went straight into the wall and Merlin quickly knocked one man out before he realised what had happened. He turned to the other who was desperately trying to release his sword from the stone.

"Who is your boss?" Merlin demanded. The man just grinned, took a vial out of his pocket and popped the cork. He tipped the contents down his throat. He spluttered and coughed until he fell and Merlin cursed aloud.

He still thought it was Agravaine but needed to be sure. He needed proof.

Merlin turned and found the father, mother and boy standing in front of him all smiling gratefully. The sorcerer pulled the hood further over his head to make sure none of them saw his face.

"Thank you for saving us." The mother smiled holding tightly to her little boy. "We don't care that you have magic. We're just happy that you just saved our boy." Merlin nodded and looked down as he felt a tug on his cloak. A little girl around seven looked up at him and he bent down to shake her hand.

"You saved my big brother!" she shouted excitedly and threw herself at him in a hug. Merlin smiled under his hood, happy that he had kept a family together. "Who are you?" He couldn't tell them his name but maybe he could go by another name.

"Who do you think I am?" he asked, thinking he might get inspiration for a name for his alter ego.

"Erm…" She grabbed her tiny chin in thought and Merlin thought she looked cute. Suddenly her eyes lit up as she pulled a little harder on the cape of his cloak. "I know! You're the Cloak - here to save Camelot!"

"The Cloak?" He questioned and the little girl just nodded excitedly. "I like it." Merlin then quickly turned around and ran to the shadows and teleported away with the sound of the little girl's cheers behind him.

The next morning, Merlin quietly ambled into Arthur's chambers only to find that the Prince was awake and changed. So he can dress himself.

"Sire? Who woke you up?" Merlin asked not believing for a second that he got himself up and dressed.

"I woke myself up, Merlin. Unlike you I am not totally incompetent." He joked but Merlin only managed a quick smile in response as he went about making Arthur's bed. "Listen Merlin, um, I'm sorry for shouting at you yesterday. I can see that I hurt you a little and I realise you were only trying to help."

The servant turned to face his master, his brow creased and his mouth slightly open.

"What have you done with the real Arthur?" Merlin teased and Arthur just laughed, amused at the antics of his servant.

"Is it really that difficult to believe that I can apologise?" Merlin raised his eyebrow a lot like Gaius would and Arthur just sighed and threw his arms out.

"Apology accepted, sire. I can already see the great king that you will become." He grinned at the Prince who looked genuinely touched at his comment.

"Thank you for believing in me, Merlin." Arthur replied genuinely. The chamber went quiet and Merlin quickly lightened up the serious moment.

"Remember that because it's the last compliment you're getting out of me for a while." Merlin broke the understanding silence between them and the two shared a laugh and happily strolled out of the chambers side by side.


	4. Lancelot

Arthur stormed through the castle. The Prince sought out his useless excuse for a manservant as usual. That idiot always seemed to be around when he wasn't needed but as soon as something came up, he disappeared.

Druids were being taken to the castle for trials and then a swift execution the next day. Merlin should have done his chores early today so Arthur could concentrate on his duties. Arthur didn't know what to think when it came to magic. The druids had shown on many occasions that they were peaceful people. But, his father had always told him magic corrupted every man, woman and child. So did killing them free them? He wasn't sure.

It had been three months since Merlin became Arthur's servant. Actually, when Arthur thought of it, he felt rather insulted that being his servant was a punishment and not an honour. Anyhow, ever since then Merlin had been intolerable. He was stupid, lazy, clumsy, not at all punctual, and according to information from Gaius, always in the damned tavern. Despite all of that though, not once had Arthur thought that Merlin had done his time and could be relieved of his duties to him. Well, maybe he had thought about it once or twice…

Merlin was different. He challenged Arthur in ways that his peers seemed afraid to do. He countered Arthur at almost every turn and he found himself coming out better for it. The best part was their constant banter - Arthur insulted Merlin left right and centre. But instead of taking it like his previous servants would have done he threw it back giving as good, and to Arthur's annoyance, sometimes better than he got. There weren't many people with whom he was closer than Merlin.

How had the unassuming boy who had only been in the Kingdom twelve weeks become so close to him? Arthur didn't have time for that mystery.

"Merlin!" Arthur bellowed as he marched his way into the physician's chambers. Gaius looked like he was about to suffer a heart attack and Arthur looked down apologetically. "I'm sorry for interrupting Gaius, I'm just looking for my useless servant." Arthur walked over to Merlin's antechamber

"I sent him out to pick herbs for me, sire," Gaius said. Arthur gripped the door handle only to find it locked. "Merlin prefers to keep his room locked, sire." Arthur rubbed his head in confusion. What does Merlin have in his room that he wants to keep locked away?

Arthur's mind travelled back to the day they met. The day he'd found Merlin sleeping in the stables next to a lot of stolen possessions. Except for one that Merlin had protested adamantly was his father's, the white staff with a symbol engraved into it. Arthur had seen it before, he just knew it.

"Oh, okay then. If you see him, tell him he must complete his chores before nightfall and he must carry out extra chores in preparation for tomorrow's execution." With that, Arthur swiftly left Gaius's chambers and made for the library. He hadn't been in there since he was a boy. It bored him.

Arthur strolled into the library and saw Geoffrey of Monmouth, the court genealogist, and strolled to him. "Good morning, sire. I have not seen you down here for seven years now." Geoffrey looked absolutely ecstatic to see Arthur down here and he felt a little guilty that he'd stopped coming. Arthur knew that Gaius and Geoffrey were quite fond of him and had been there for him and Morgana when Uther was too busy to cater to their parental needs.

"Yes it has been something around that, Geoffrey. I am looking for the symbols, sigils and coats of arms for every noble who has ever served Camelot." Without a word, the court genealogist sped off into the back room where he kept sensitive information.

"Here, sire." Geoffrey came out carrying a huge pile of papers and Arthur inwardly groaned. He had important things to do, but this felt more important. He could feel it. Besides if Merlin was skipping his duties, why couldn't he?

The Prince took the piles of papers over to a lone desk and started to look through them.

Arthur had skimmed and re-skimmed every single piece of parchment in the pile that Geoffrey had given him. He found no trace of any sort of symbol that resembled the one from Merlin's staff. He knew he had seen it somewhere before when he'd had to study the history of Camelot and all those who worked for his father.

Just then, Arthur had a sudden thought. These weren't the only papers that had nobles' seals on them. Magic users had been under the employment of his father before he realised magic was evil and started to purge the land of it. The Prince returned to Geoffrey and asked for those papers and, while a little reluctant, Geoffrey gave them to him.

He read through them, hoping that he wouldn't find the seal that matched Merlin's staff. He read through to the most recent of employments under Uther which were two decades old. There were many magically related nobles, experts in magical beasts, gods and the energy of magic itself. There were philosophers, scientists, herbalists and many more, but on the final page had only a few noble seals. The most notable thing about it was a large seal that had been torn out, although the inscription was still intact – almost.

Arthur read the inscription underneath 'Balinor Ambrosius. Court Dragonlord and Sorcerer to King Uther Pendragon'. Underneath that was another inscription but it had been scorched completely from the paper. A few lines poked out but it he couldn't read it.

Arthur concluded he'd more or less wasted his day trying to find out whether or not his simpleton manservant was an evil sorcerer. He realised that….he wasn't.

Meanwhile, Merlin wandered through the forest. He gripped his trusty staff loosely in his right hand and carried a thatched basket in the other. He'd been filling it with herbs. Merlin was enjoying his time in Camelot. Even though Arthur acted like an utter prat most of the time and a dollop head for the rest of it, Merlin found that he wasn't all bad.

Arthur had a good heart. He cared for his people and Merlin had seen on how he fought for the people of the lower town in council alongside his sister. Of course he wasn't the only good thing about Camelot. His mind drifted to Gwen and a faint blush graced his cheeks. They had become very close since his arrival and Merlin still yearned for something more with her, but his shyness stopped him at every turn.

In his daydreaming, he hadn't realised he had wandered straight into a camp full of bandits. Only the warning of a voice from behind him made him look up.

Hello," Merlin said timidly. He slowly began to step back towards where the voice had come from.

"Run!" The voice said and Merlin didn't disobey. He glanced warily around the camp and dropped the basket of herbs. He saw the bandits all wearing the same smirk as they picked up their swords.

"Goodbye," he said fleetingly as he felt a tug on his sleeve. Before Merlin knew it, he'd begun running away as fast as possible alongside another man. Merlin turned his head to get a better look at the stranger and saw that he looked rather tanned and wore light chain mail. However, the man bore no mark of a kingdom.

The stranger pushed him into a ditch and they hid under a lip that had naturally formed over it. Merlin held his breath as at least two dozen bandits ran past them. When they thought they were finally safe they both breathed out heavily.

"Thank you," Merlin said gratefully. He offered his hand to shake. "My name is Merlin," he added after they shook hands.

"Lancelot," the stranger replied. Merlin got up and scanned their area. He figured that the bandits were probably quite far away now.

"Where are you heading, Lancelot?" Merlin asked as he took Lancelot's arm to help him out of the ditch.

"I'm on my way to Camelot to find a decent trade. You see I had wanted to become a knight but I found out that you had to be a noble. I still train daily with my sword." That didn't really add up for Merlin.

"If you can't be a knight why train?" Merlin pondered aloud. He could see the castle beyond the trees and he couldn't help but think it glorious.

"I've always wanted to protect people. As a child living in an outlying village I always dreamt of fighting off bandits and evil-doers." The two laughed for a moment at the child-like fantasy. "I can do that without being a knight too. The Cloak proves that," Lancelot answered and Merlin was shocked to find that his escapades as Cloak had reached so far so quickly.

They walked in comfortable silence all the way to Camelot. Lancelot said he would stay in the tavern and rent out a room before he started to look for a job. Merlin nodded before returning to the castle, where he remebered that he was supposed to do his chores early for Arthur.

Arthur was going to be mad.

Arthur didn't leave anything to chance. There was a small possibility that Merlin knew his parents and that one of them could be Balinor Ambrosius. Just then Merlin stumbled through the door, not knocking as usual.

"Merlin, do you know who your mother and father are?" Merlin looked startled at Arthur's question. The Prince hoped it wasn't for the reasons he was imagining.

"Um, my mother lives in Ealdor and her name is Hunith. I have no recollection or knowledge of my father. He left when my mother was still pregnant with me and like only left me the staff." It seemed to sadden Merlin, but as much as it did hurt Arthur to make him relive that memory it was a huge relief to him.

"Finish your chores for the evening and then you may leave." Merlin nodded. Arthur slumped on his chair and watched the sun dip behind the mountains.

Later that night, the moon hung in the sky. Its lunar shine allowed the Cloak to see shadows and outlines of figures all around him as he stood high on the bell tower. It had become his favourite spot during his months in Camelot. As the Cloak he could see almost everything and - with the help of magic to heighten his senses - hear everything. Merlin focused on a wooden cart which held many figures. They could only be the druids that had stood trial this afternoon.

Merlin had been aware of their arrival and had a plan to put into action. He would teleport down and unlock the door to the barred cart. Then he would teleport each person out and into the forest. Sure, it would heavily drain him but it was quiet and nobody would notice until both he and the druids had vanished.

He readied himself to teleport down and unlock the cage when the man who had brought them in sauntered from the tavern, ale in hand and devilish smile on his face. Merlin gripped his staff a little tighter and his knuckles started to whiten. He watched as the man drank his ale and threw the mug away. He unlocked the door with a slurred cackle. He pulled out one of the druids, a young girl. The moonlight caught her and he saw that she was very pretty. The terrified look in her eyes made Merlin's jaw harden and his teeth clench.

The man disappeared with the druid girl inside the tavern; Merlin cast the teleportation spell and transported himself to the cart. The Cloak crept through the empty streets to the cart and made a mental connection with the remaining four druids.

" _I'm here to get you out. Don't worry - I will free you, but first I must save your friend."_ Merlin nodded over to the tavern and the four druids smiled and nodded.

" _Thank you so much, Emrys." Emrys?_ Merlin had never been called that before.

" _He is not yet ready to know that name. His destiny has shifted! The noble one is here also,"_ another druid said. Merlin was about to question them that when a scream came from in the tavern. Merlin's eyes narrowed and with a muttered spell, he teleported toward the noise.

The Cloak appeared in a room above the tavern. He saw the man hold the young druid roughly against a wall with her robes hitched over her knee. His repulsive face was fixed to the side of her neck as she struggled to get away.

" **Forþ fleoge"** Merlin didn't even twitch as he sent the man flying out the window. He had only learnt that spell yesterday. He strode past the shaking druid girl and peered out the window. Merlin could see the man getting up, and as he turned Merlin saw a jagged piece of glass lodged in his eye. The Cloak smiled before he turned to the young druid girl. "My name's Merlin, are you okay?" he asked.

"Um yes I'm fine now. I'm Freya." Merlin wiped away a stray tear on her cheek. She then caught him off guard when she kissed him full on the lips. "Thank you, Merlin." His face went beet red as did hers. They stood there for a moment before Merlin came to his senses and teleported them into the forest.

"I'll be back in a moment; I just need to get the rest of your friends." Freya nodded then ran to hide inside the forest and wait for him.

Merlin then transported back onto the bell tower. There he saw the doors of the wooden cart open and a figure leading the druids straight to the castle gates which were heavily defended by Camelot guards. They were going to be slaughtered!

He materialised down from the bell tower and stood in front of the fleeing group. He examined the person leading them and gasped as he saw a familiar face.

"Lancelot."

"Merlin." He'd known the guy one day and Lancelot already knew more about him than Arthur, Gwen and Morgana. "You're the Cloak?" Merlin inwardly cursed before his eyes widened at the onslaught of Camelot guards coming their way.

"We can talk about this later." Merlin turned to the druids knowing there was only one course of action. "You all need to surrender. If you do so they won't kill you. They'll only put you in the dungeons. I can rescue you from there." Before any of them could protest, Merlin grabbed Lancelot and teleported to the bell tower in a tornado of wind and dust.

"What are you doing? We have to help them!" Lancelot was making too much noise for Merlin's liking, so he covered his mouth with his hand.

Lancelot tried to break free but Merlin was stronger than he looked. Instead he settled for watching as the druids surrendered and forced to walk into the castle. Merlin had been right after all.

"Meet me in the physician's chambers tomorrow morning. From there we'll go to the dungeons and save them all before they get burned on the pyre." Merlin took his hand off of Lancelot's mouth and teleported them both into an alleyway.

Lancelot turned to see Merlin had vanished. He chuckled quietly and thought about how out of all the people in the city, he had become friends with the Cloak.

The next morning, just as promised, Lancelot found his way to the physician's chambers. He knocked and slipped his head through the door when he heard an elderly voice call him.

"Hi, I'm Lancelot. I am here to see Merlin." The older man gestured for him to come in and as he shut the door another door behind him opened. He smiled as he regarded Merlin in his cloak with his staff by his side.

"Okay, Lancelot. This is what we're going to do." Lancelot gave a subtle nod towards the other occupant. It wasn't as subtle as he thought apparently since the man gave him a daring expression. "Gaius knows all about what I do; you have nothing to fear." Lancelot smiled at the man he knew now as Gaius, who nodded. "Anyway, it is simple. We teleport into the dungeons and you stand guard whilst I teleport everyone out." Merlin fumbled for something in his pocket before throwing him a dark neckerchief. "Wear that so it covers the lower half of your face. If you're staying you won't want people to recognise you." Lancelot did as he was told and made sure the black neckerchief covered him well.

"I didn't know you had a black neckerchief, Merlin," Gaius stated.

"I bought it this morning. Now let's go, Lance." Lancelot grinned. Merlin chanted ancient words and Lancelot marvelled at the power he radiated. **"Bedyrne ús! Astýre ús þanonweard!"**

Suddenly they were enveloped in a whirlwind just like before and then when it died down they appeared in the dungeons. Lancelot turned his head and cautiously looked down the hallways.

"All the guards have encompassed the lowers town by decree of the King. This place isn't guarded very well," Merlin said.

Lancelot stood just outside the cells as Merlin ran into the one that held the druids. He calmed them down before he told them their plan. Lance glanced down the hall – unfortunately they would have to come up with a new plan.

"Merlin, we need a new plan. We have company." His partner in crime turned with a look of shock and determination on his face. Merlin unlocked all their chains with a flash of his eyes before he guided them out of the cells. Lancelot could hear the footsteps getting closer. "We need to go now!" He couldn't dare say his name now that the guards closed in.

"Alright, alright, there is a secret tunnel that leads outside the castle gates; it's in the armoury which isn't far from here." Merlin led the way as Lancelot covered their backs. The men had turned the corner now and Lancelot could see their leader, a man with an eye patch.

"Cloak!" he called out. Merlin sprung to his side in a second and blasted away the men but unfortunately some managed to get up. Lance began engaging them in combat.

"Don't kill anyone - that's not how I do things." With that advice in mind, Lance struck at the legs and arms so that none died. He aimed to immobilise or render them unable to wield a sword. He finished off the men quickly and to his glee he did it without having to kill anyone.

"No one gets away from Hengist!" he heard someone shout. Somehow their leader must have gotten past because he'd been so focussed on fighting.

Lance ran to where he heard the sound of steel and wood. As Lance turned the corner, he ducked. Hengist flew into the air and over his head. He turned and smiled at Merlin who quickly shared his amusement before running towards the armoury.

Merlin led the way and soon they were all crawling through the secret tunnel. The adrenalin pumped through Lance felt like none other, and he thought about what his life could be like with Merlin, the Cloak.

But he was just a hanger on, wasn't he?

Why would the Cloak, with all his magic, need him?

Soon they ran out of the tunnels and rushed to the forest where he spotted another druid girl hiding behind a bush.

"You're safe. Now you need to get out of Camelot." Lancelot watched as Merlin gave a pointed look at the waiting druid girl. "All of you." She looked reluctant and Lance wondered if they'd known each other before this. "I'm sorry, Freya, you can't stay." He guessed they had.

Freya walked up to him and gently brushed their lips together. Lance did the honourable thing and turned his head so they could have their privacy. It was none of his business.

The druids left with a thank you on their lips and Merlin turned and smiled at his accomplice.

"You did well today, Lancelot." They shared a brotherly hug before Merlin regarded him with a knowing gaze "You know, you said you wanted to help people. How about you help me?"

"Help you do what?" Lancelot replied warily.

"Be my accomplice, my second shadow, my sidekick. Help me protect Camelot." Lancelot thought about the countless hours he'd spent training with the sword and the disappointment he'd felt when he realised he couldn't help people as a knight.

He already had his answer.

"I think I'll take you up on that." He pushed his neckerchief down so it hung around his neck.

"You'll need a name though," Merlin thought out loud.

"What about Knight Blade?" It made sense to Lancelot. He was pretty handy with a blade and had always wanted to become a knight and by the looks of things the Cloak operated at night. It was rather clever really.

"Welcome to Camelot Knight Blade." They shook hands and smiled at their newly forged friendship.


	5. A team

A lone cart stood in the middle of town. It swayed slightly as the wind battered against it. The horses neighed and whinnied in protest of the rain, and the driver sat waiting for the rest of the load.

However, "the load" spoke with frightened voices and trembled with small hands. The rain knocked hard against the wooden cart and lightning struck the ground nearby. The occasional scream was heard only to be quietened by a whip crack

Strange hands lifted another child from their sleeping bed whilst their parents snuggled close, unaware that their young were being taken. The man smirked as the young boy stared up at him in fear, too scared to even cry out for his parents. How good it felt to be in control, the kidnapper thought.

"Okay boys, this is the last one. Let's lock 'em up and get moving. You know the boss wants us to be quick so he can get his money quicker," the leader ordered. The other eight nodded before they jumped on their horses and kicked them into a slow trot.

One of the bandits turned to his accomplices and spoke into the night. "Ya know I 'eared that there's a mad demon sent by God to cleanse us of our sins."

"Jack told me that his mate was actually the Prince of Camelot. He hadn't seen anyone use a sword quite like that guy did," another responded.

"Ol' man Jackson says he's a monster. 'A creature of pure darkness,' he called him," the driver added to the idle chatter.

"Will you lot shut up? There ain't a mad demon, no creature of pure darkness and I tell you that it ain't the Prince because he's been leadin' the search for the two of 'em," the leader stated with a tone of finality.

They heard a thumping sound. Their heads whipped around just in time to see another rider drop from his horse. The leader turned and saw, to his shock, that two horses were now rider-less. A faint whoosh and flap of a cloth passed him and all their heads turned towards the noise. They heard one of their riders hit the ground abruptly.

"Everybody get off your horses and find these guys." The leader's voice cracked a little as he brushed the sweat off his brow. The sound of an unsheathing sword made them all jump and turn. They all unsheathed their own swords and began to spread out.

Clanging could be heard as they clashed, and with a sudden smack, silence returned. Another man cried out in terror as he was blown back into a crate full of fruit which shattered on impact.

"Who are you?" the leader shouted defiantly. The remaining four had found each other again, hoping that strength in numbers could protect them.

"Oh haven't you heard?" The billow of a cloak flapped in and out of the shadows. Every so often the moonlight reflected against a metal blade that swayed in the darkness. "I am the demon." They heard a dark chuckle as the patter of rain on armour resonated through the streets. "I _am_ a creature of pure darkness." They looked up to the roof of a hut and saw a figure coated in the luminous moonlight. "God sent me to cleanse you of your sins." The two figures jumped out at the four of them and the Cloak instantly knocked one of them out whilst Knight Blade crashed metal against metal with his sword.

The Cloak blocked his two oncoming opponents. With precision and expertise he disarmed one of them then sent the end of his staff into the man's cranium. Unfortunately, the leader took his chance and sliced the Cloak across his rib. The Cloak groaned.

"Cloak!" Knight Blade head butted his opponent. He quickly began to trade blows with their leader. "You…will…regret…that," he grunted between hits.

"Duck!" Knight Blade pushed the leader forward before he crouched and watched the leader fly over his head. He grinned as he remembered two months ago when the Cloak had done the same thing to Hengist.

"Cheers, mate." He smiled. "But I think I had it." His partner stumbled forward a bit before catching himself with his staff. "Whoa, we need to get you out of here and fast." Lancelot knew they couldn't teleport because of Merlin's injury. His magic was being used to heal and it drained him. At least that was how Merlin had explained it to him the last time this happened.

"To the catacombs, Lance, we can't let Arthur's knights catch us." Lance had already heard them but luckily both the night and the rain blurred their sight. Merlin had perfect sight thanks to his magic.

They ran as fast as they could and Merlin hastily unlocked then relocked the door with his magic. They carefully descended the stairs while Merlin whispered a spell to light the torches illuminating the tunnel of catacombs.

"That was too close," Lancelot breathed out, taking off his helmet. He moved Merlin's cloak so he could take a better look at the gash. It wasn't too deep but Gaius needed to see to this one.

"Nah. We did great. The knights will find the children and their families will stay together." Merlin smiled but he winced when his fingers trailed the wound. Lancelot took off Merlin's shirt so that he could get to where Merlin had been cut.

"Rest, Merlin, we'll head back into the castle before dawn." Merlin carefully lowered himself onto one of the two beds. They had brought them down when they first decided to use the catacombs as a secondary base of operations - after Merlin's room, of course.

Lancelot watched his friend's eyelids bat and eventually fall as he wrapped the bandage around Merlin's bare stomach. Then he lay on his own bed and allowed sleep to claim his tired and aching body.

Whilst the two vigilantes recovered from their nightly duties, the Prince and Princess dined.

"Arthur, how can you call him a menace when he and his accomplice save more people than the knights have? The Cloak has only been here five months and Knight Blade, as he calls himself, even less." Morgana found herself in an argument with her brother about the vigilantes yet again. She defended them because they had done right by the kingdom but Arthur didn't seem to see it that way.

"They are taking the law into their own hands and dishing out justice however they please. Agravaine is right; the knights are the law, not some magical rebel in a cloak and his armoured friend." The addition of another rebellious figure had caused a ruckus in the council chambers and Arthur was slowly recovering from a headache.

"I think you're just jealous because Knight Blade is so good with a sword people think he is you. I'm sure he is much better," she teased, baiting him intently. When he didn't take it Morgana huffed and changed the subject. "Where's Merlin?" The servant had not been in the dining hall all evening. In fact, during the late evenings, he couldn't be found. She felt disappointed because right now he was better company than her father.

"I have no idea. He's probably at the tavern slacking off as usual," Arthur berated through gritted teeth, annoyed at his servant's absence.

"I find that hard to believe. Gwen, have you heard from him?" The royals turned to the maidservant.

"I bumped into him on my way here and he said he had urgent matters with Gaius." Morgana smirked at Arthur triumphantly whilst the Prince just sighed in irritation.

"Do anything else when you bumped into him?" Morgana joked, which caused the Prince to choke on his wine.

"No, milady, we just spoke about… things." Gwen finished lamely as heat rose to her cheeks. Luckily, Morgana was too busy laughing at Arthur who still coughed on his wine.

Meanwhile, Hengist stood in a dark chamber. He stared unwaveringly at the man in front of him despite the lack of one eye. He smirked as he noticed the man trembled. _Good_ , he thought.

"So you mean to tell me two men took down nine of ours and we just lost another shipment of potential child slaves?" The leader of that particular squad had managed to get away before the Knights had found him.

"They caught us off guard, sir." His excuses were pitiful and Hengist had enough of his presence.

"Kill him," he said blandly. The leader tried to shout for help but was swiftly cut off as a steel blade pierced his chest. "Dispose of him then go to the dungeons and kill the caught prisoners," Hengist ordered as he began to pace. The boss would be here soon.

Just like he had predicted, the door swung open and Hengist instantly bowed in respect. "Lord Agravaine, sir!" He saluted until the boss gestured for him to stop.

"What happened out there, Hengist?" Agravaine asked as he poured himself a glass of wine. He twirled the red liquid in the glass and inspected it carefully.

"We lost the slaves, my lord, but I have dealt with it. Our ties have been cut off and cannot be traced back to us, er, you, my lord." Hengist might have looked like the typical brute but the man did have a well-calculated brain.

"They had better be. You must deal with this Cloak and his partner in anti-crime. They are bad for business." Agravaine sipped at his wine and made his way to the bed where Uther slept.

"Are you looking forward to the celebrations tomorrow, my lord?" Hengist asked and Agravaine sneered in response.

"It will be spectacularly beneficial to our cause, Hengist." The boss and his second-in-command shared a dark chuckle.

The next morning, Merlin and Lancelot stumbled into the physician's chambers. Fortunately for them Gaius was up and pottering about his desk but his eye brow shot up as Merlin was sat on the table by Lancelot.

"What happened to him, Lancelot?" Gaius demanded as he unwrapped the bandages on Merlin's torso.

"We tracked slave traders and when we engaged to fight, Merlin miscalculated and got sliced. It's not that deep but it is by no means shallow," Lancelot informed Gaius before hurrying to Merlin's chambers to change. He took Merlin's cloak and staff with him. "Merlin, open the door." Lance heard a faint whisper from his friend and the door magically opened for him.

"You must be more careful Merlin. If you hadn't asked Lancelot to help you two months ago then you could well be dead by now." All Gaius received was a groan from Merlin as he lightly dabbed the cut.

"Spare me the lecture, Gaius. You can do it next time, I promise." Merlin chuckled and smiled up at his mentor.

"I fear there might not be a chance to tell you next time," Gaius muttered but Merlin had heard and the atmosphere turned solemn.

"Don't worry, Gaius." Lance broke the tension as he came over to pat Merlin on the head. "I got him." Merlin's eyes flashed and the door shut and locked again. They had decided that Lancelot would keep a change of clothes in Merlin's chamber just in case. He wore a grey shirt and brown slacks.

Without warning, Gwen hurried into the room. When she saw Merlin hurt she snatched the rag from a bewildered Gaius and dabbed the cut herself.

"What urgent matter with Gaius resulted in this?" Gwen questioned and Lancelot winked at Gaius who just smiled in amused response.

"Drunkards in the street on the way home. I told Gaius to go and one of them pulled out a knife. Luckily I managed to get away but not before they sliced me." Merlin breathed heavily.

"You should be more careful, Merlin. Don't go throwing yourself in harm's way; I don't want anything to happen to you." She whispered the last bit but caught herself on it and backtracked. "I mean none of us do." Merlin stared at the floor and felt heat rush to his cheeks.

Gwen traced her finger along other cuts which marked Merlin's surprisingly muscled torso. Merlin had accumulated a lot of scars over time. Lance wore armour; Merlin didn't because he needed speed on his side. His breathing became laboured and he wasn't sure if it was the wound or Gwen.

"Tavern fights?" she whispered with concern. He just nodded, not wanting to ruin this moment as they looked into each other's eyes. Her brown irises buried deep within his soul and he couldn't bear to look away. A cough from Lancelot and their moment shattered. "I should be going now; Morgana will wonder where I am. I hope you can make it to the celebrations. Oh, and I expect to see you in the forge tomorrow, Lancelot." She left before Merlin could ask her what the celebrations were for.

Lancelot had been employed by Tom as the "stand-in black smith". He worked alongside Gwen - when she had time - and they forged all kinds of things. He enjoyed it a lot, the income was good and it allowed him to pay for his rent and food. It was where Lancelot had made himself lightweight armour which allowed him to move freely and be more agile. He also dyed the armour black so that it didn't shine as well against the moonlight and forged himself another sword. Its blade was also black.

Gaius then answered his unspoken question, "The castle is celebrating twenty years since the ban on magic." The physician sighed but the two friends didn't miss it.

"That should be fun." Lance chuckled with amusement.

The celebration had only just begun and the King's speech just finished.

"…and now let us eat in the knowledge that nearly all sorcery has been purged from the land." The nobles cheered whilst Merlin and Lancelot smirked at the words "nearly all". The Cloak wasn't going anywhere.

"Hey, Merlin." Lancelot tapped his friend on the shoulder and pointed in the direction of Morgana and Gwen. Merlin chuckled at Lance's antics and gave them a wave and a cheeky wink. "Go to her, Merlin. The Cloak might be content beating up bad guys. But Merlin? He needs some real happiness."

Merlin patted Lance on the back before making his way over to the two women.

He was serving tonight but Arthur's goblet was pretty full at this point. So he opted to take the risk and go and speak to Guinevere across the room.

"Good evening, milady." He dipped his head in respect. He usually said something along the lines of "Hey, Morgana" but that was far too informal in their current setting. "Gwen, it is good to see you." His grin widened a little.

"You saw me this morning," the maid retorted.

"And so my day just gets better," he replied. Merlin didn't know what it was. Occasionally, Morgana would tease him and he would splutter and stutter until she took pity on him and started talking again. But everything came so easily with Gwen.

"I think I'm going to go talk to Sir Leon." Morgana exited between them and began a conversation with the blonde knight who seemed more than happy to talk. Merlin knew that Leon actually had eyes for Lady Amelia. She was a Scottish girl who moved to England after her home was attacked. Merlin knew this because Lady Amelia spent her time in the library. Merlin went to there relieve stress as he poured over books on magical beasts and creatures of myth and wonder. They two traded conversations every now and again.

Merlin and Gwen ambled through different conversations covering several topics, including the Cloak and Knight Blade. Merlin tried not to be jealous when she seemed to compliment Lance's alter ego more than his own.

Just then the band started playing a soft tune and Merlin smiled as an idea planted itself into his head.

"Would you accompany me to the dance floor, milady?" Merlin grinned and led her to the floor as she nodded. She looked so pretty when shy.

They stepped from side to side and glided around the nobles who sneered with disdain as two servants danced between them. They didn't notice but Merlin did spot Arthur looking…proud? He couldn't be sure but smiled back in return anyhow.

"You are a good dance," she complimented as he twirled her only to bring her close to his chest.

"Yes, my mother was adamant I learn for when I met the woman of my dreams." He laughed at the memory until he found himself gazing into her eyes. He raised his hand to her cheek and lent in ever so slightly, trying to relish the moment.

At that moment bandits barged through the doors and stabbed the knights that stood guard. Off-duty knights who had the sense to carry a sword unsheathed them. But the bandits had clearly thought of this and grabbed hostages. Merlin looked over at Lancelot and gave him a nod to leave.

"Gwen, I need you to wait here and don't move." Before she could question him he disappeared through the panic and darted through the servants' entrance.

Gwen didn't know what to do. Bandits had surrounded them and started taking the nobles' jewellery. She was thankful for her poverty in this moment, for she had no valuables on her. She saw that Uther had mysteriously disappeared. How convenient she thought. Gwen watched as Morgana and Arthur struggled against of a couple of bandits hold. Those were her friends, defiant till the end.

Speaking of friends, Merlin had just left her in the middle of this fiasco without warning her of what he was doing. He hadn't even thought to bring her with him. He kept letting her down tonight.

All of a sudden, every candle was blown out by a gust of wind. It felt like a mini hurricane inside the main hall. Then everything went quiet.

Thump. Whack. Crash. Bang. Through the darkness Gwen could hear a sword as it clashed against something. It sounded like another sword. She heard a grunt and the blade she could see disappeared. Three loud noises came from her left and she could just see the outline of three unconscious men. She spotted two golden eyes in the distance and knew they were safe.

" **Forbærnan"** A voice echoed throughout the hall and the candles flickered back to life. Stood in front of the nobles, knights and servants were the Cloak and Knight Blade. Gwen looked around the room to see every single bandit out cold. They hadn't killed anyone. The thought alone made her smile in admiration.

"You are both under arrest for disturbing the peace and vigilantism." Arthur's voice hung in the air and the knights moved towards the two vigilantes.

Merlin and Lancelot had managed to save everybody. Now they had to save themselves and Merlin realised he couldn't teleport away. It would take too long and as soon as he tried, one of the knights could strike through the wind and into one of them.

"What do we do?" Lancelot whispered from under his black helmet.

"You're not going to like it." Merlin nodded at the window.

"You have three seconds to come quietly or we will use force against you." Arthur sounded like he was about to lose his patience. Not good.

"You have got to be joking."

Merlin just grinned at his friend. "On Arthur's count," he whispered.

"1," Arthur started whilst he and his knights moved closer.

"2…

3."

On three the two ran past the nobles and jumped out of the window. Merlin grabbed Lance and quickly muttered the teleportation spell. Instead of hitting the streets of Camelot with a splat, the two found themselves lying on the floor of the physician's chambers.

"I can't believe that worked," Merlin laughed, sounding rather relieved.

"Wait, you didn't know?" Lancelot questioned as a mix of anger, fear and prideful amusement flooded through him.

"I was 60 – 70% sure we would be fine." Merlin pulled his hood down as Gaius came rushing in. The two marvelled at how spritely the old man could be sometimes.

"Never do anything if those are your odds, Merlin." Gaius reprimanded. He'd obviously heard the end of their conversation.

"We're both alive and now we know something concrete." Lancelot and Gaius stared at Merlin for a few seconds - they weren't following. "It's simple. Those bandits couldn't have gotten that far inside the castle without help." Gaius seemed to realise where he was going.

"A betrayal in court," he spoke slowly and Merlin nodded whilst Lancelot's eyes widened in realisation.

"It all points to Agravaine. We still can't be sure if Uther is involved but I would bet he isn't himself at the very least." Merlin pondered for a moment before gasping, "That could mean the attempt on Gwen's life was personal."

"That would make sense. The boss is a noble, and could be Agravaine, does not like her friendly relationship with the Princess. So he ordered to have her killed, but when it failed they went back to stealing, killing and kidnapping," Lancelot supplied.

In the quiet all three perked up to hear a scurry of footsteps.

"Damn it!" Merlin cursed aloud.

"What is it?" Lancelot asked, confused at his friend's outburst.

"On my second day in Camelot I was followed here. Apparently they never stopped and now the boss knows who we're and that we are on to him."

Lancelot sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"What does that mean for us?".

"I don't know yet. They can't touch us directly; we're too close with the Prince and Princess. At least I am, and if anything happens to you I'll make 'em talk." Lance beamed in appreciation.

"Merlin? Where did you go back at the hall?" Gwen walked in but stopped when she saw Lancelot in his armour and Merlin in his cloak. "You – you two are the… and Lance you're…" Gwen gasped and sank to the floor.

"Gwen, listen, you cannot tell anybody…doing so could put you in danger. If Agravaine finds out that you know he'll -"

"Wait, you think Agravaine is behind the problems in Camelot?" Gwen looked at them in disbelief.

"We believe he runs an underground crime organisation but we're still looking for evidence," Lance explained as he knelt down next to Gwen. "You can't tell anyone about this, about what we do."

"I won't, I promise, I just wish you had told me sooner. Wait here, I'll be right back." She smiled and left without a word.

By the time she came back Merlin and Lance were in their usual attire.

"I heard that people had seen your face under the hood, Merlin." They stared at each other in surprise but Gwen quickly added, "They had no idea who you were but you looked familiar. You're getting noticed."

"How do you think I can combat that, Gwen? It's okay for Lance - he has a helmet blocking his face and it's done me a world of good too," Merlin joked, which earned a brotherly punch to the arm.

"I wanted to thank you for saving me all those months ago. I made this after I heard about people seeing under the hood." Gwen revealed a mask. It had two holes for the eyes and Merlin jumped up.

"You're a genius, Gwennie!" He exclaimed as he brought her into a big hug before placing a chaste kiss on her cheek.

"Stop calling me that!" she moaned, though her cheeks had a light blush.

"So it seems you've got yourself a team, Merlin." Gaius observed the trio with pride.

"It seems I have, Gaius." Merlin smiled at his friends. He was glad that his group had grown from him and Gaius to them, Lancelot and Gwen.

It almost felt like a family.


	6. A Day Out

Morgana's dreams were never usually so vivid. She doesn't know what could have possibly triggered them to come back, but she knows that this will be one she will wish to forget.

 _Merlin and Gwen kiss. A man with an eye patch steps out of the shadows with a horrible-looking smirk on his face. Lance and Gwen are dancing. A blonde woman with dark, glowing eyes stands in complete darkness. Familiar blue eyes turn a deep red. She sees herself, Arthur and her father at sword point. The last image she sees is Agravaine's triumphant grin._

 _Then everything goes black._

Morgana suddenly awakens, bolting straight up from her pillow. She breathed rapidly, tears falling freely down her cheeks. Although unknown to her, her eyes shone a golden light. The Princess sobbed into her quilt as her dream slowly faded from memory until only the emptiness and distress was left.

It was early morning. As usual Merlin strolled through the castle and smiled brightly at his fellow servants and maids who all shared his glee. The few knights he knew would not react badly to his greetings waved back to him in the hallway and he felt glad he could breach propriety in such a way.

The manservant walked straight into the Prince's chamber without a knock, as per usual, only to find Arthur awake. That was not usual.

"What happened?" Merlin asked. Arthur didn't usually wake early but when he did the reason was terrible. A bad time for his compatriot to be injured, Merlin thought. Lancelot had been stabbed the previous night and sent to bed for two weeks before he could re-join Merlin as Knight Blade.

However, contradicting what Merlin thought, Arthur simply laughed at his servant's sudden jump to conclusions.

"Sire?" Merlin prompted. He wondered what could be so funny.

"Nothing has happened, Merlin. Honestly, will you react this way every time you find me dressed and awake before you arrive?" Merlin just stared, confused, at the Prince. "Thank you for your confidence, appreciate it as always," Arthur smiled before he sheathed his sword.

"So, let me get this straight, you're awake." Arthur nodded. "You're dressed." He nodded again. "I take it you've had breakfast." Another nod. "And the Kingdom is not falling?" Arthur laughed but nodded his head once more. "What is happening?" Merlin asked, quite puzzled.

"I am accompanying my dear sister on a ride into the forest. I have been pressed for time as of late and I wish to spend what little I have with Morgana." Arthur walked out and gestured for Merlin to follow him.

"I take it I have to come with you." Merlin saw the glint in the Prince's eye and stopped. "What have you done?" His eyes looked serious but his tone was light.

"Nothing, I have done absolutely nothing. Come on Merlin." Merlin didn't buy his innocent look.

"Gwen is coming, isn't she?" Merlin stated rather than asked. "And you and your 'dear sister' are setting us up," Merlin deduced.

"For an idiot you can be quite smart sometimes," Arthur quipped, which earned him an amused glare.

"Well one of us has to be," Merlin retorted and received a light punch in the arm. He winced as Arthur hit a bruise that he had gotten a few days ago from a very strong bandit.

"Don't be such a girl, Merlin." Merlin could only keep silent. He didn't need Arthur wondering where he'd gotten all the bruises and scars. He'd have too many questions. "Get the horses ready." Arthur walked off in the direction of Morgana's chambers until he turned around. "Oh and Merlin? Try not to get too flustered when Gwen starts talking to you."

"Prat," Merlin shouted back.

"Idiot."

"Dollop-head."

"Clumsy oaf."

"Bone idled toad." Merlin faintly caught Arthur's laugh before he turned to make his way to the stables and ready the horses.

Merlin had just finished saddling Morgana's horse when he heard the two royals' laughter getting closer. Merlin turned to see Arthur and Morgana with Gwen, who seemed a little red-faced. They must've teased her on the way here Merlin figured.

"Ah, Merlin, you've done something successfully. Well done you!" Arthur bantered. But Merlin didn't bother responding; he just grinned.

Instead, Merlin went up to Gwen and held out his hand for her to take. As shy as ever, she smiled before taking his hand to get on her horse.

"Hey, I'm sorry if they're giving you a hard time," he apologised. Merlin knew that it wasn't just the two royals either. The whole castle was whispered about them and they both knew it.

"It's fine. They were just joking." Merlin placed a hand on her knee and squeezed in comfort. He caught her beautiful brown eyes which were filled to the brim with optimism and hope and he found himself lost in them. Annoyingly though, Arthur's cough brought him back to reality.

He turned to see Arthur and Morgana smirking devilishly and he fought the urge to curse them both. He simply jumped on his horse and kicked it as he sped in front. The wind beat against his face and he took a moment to relish in it before the Prince and Princess rode up next to him.

"Bet you can't beat me," Merlin challenged. He knew full well that the two were extremely competitive and would grab the chance to put one over on the other.

"Do you really?" Morgana smirked and Merlin could already see the flicker of competition in her eyes. It was rather scary.

"3, 2, 1 GO!" Arthur shouted as he kicked his horse to speed ahead and Morgana followed whilst Merlin slowed down and waited for Gwen to catch up.

"What did you do?" Gwen questioned, confused and amused by the two royals who cursed each other as they sprinted forward on their horses.

"I challenged them both to a race." The both laughed at the royals' and spirit of competitiveness.

"Well aren't you sly," she teased.

"Sly is such an ugly word. I prefer calculated." Merlin joked, which got the intended laugh from the pretty maid.

Silence hung between them. Not out of tension or awkwardness but content. Until Gwen broke it. "How is Lance?" Last night she had helped tend to the wound with Gaius whilst Merlin nursed his own cut.

"He'll live. He's a strong one." Merlin smiled. Lancelot was just as close as he and Arthur and it was a lot easier to share things about himself with his partner in crime. Lance held no prejudice against his kind and saw magic for what it was. A force controlled by good and bad people. He felt sure Arthur did not see it like that.

"I know," she replied.

"He'll be fine, Gwen. By the way, thank you for the mask, it has really helped. That leather armour you made me too," Merlin had been knifed a few weeks ago and he had come out okay because of the armour Gwen had made him. She made a great addition to the team.

"That's alright, Merlin. Anything to help you." Merlin noticed how she'd said "you" instead of "you and Lance". It felt a lot more personal. "It's dangerous, Merlin. Why do you do it?" Gwen looked genuinely concerned and worried about him. It reminded Merlin of his mother and how she looked at him after he'd made things levitate in their hut.

"Because no one else will," Merlin declared before he pushed for a gallop. "Let's catch up. They'll be waiting on us." Gwen joined him. They galloped the rest of the way.

Around midday, the four friends dismounted and relaxed next to an old oak tree. Merlin and Gwen quickly set up for lunch and retrieved cutlery from the hamper. They also pulled out a selection of meats, cheeses and fruits as well as bread and an apple pie.

They sat in contented silence. Each one of them ate a slice of their chosen meat inside two slices of bread; no classes existed here. They were just friends. Merlin had never really had friends back in Ealdor. Just Will and he was great but also more like a brother. The rest of his village resented him for his gifts.

"Arthur," Morgana started. "Do you remember that time when you were fourteen And…?"

"Morgana. Don't you dare say anything." Arthur warned. His tone sounded more worried than threatening as he looked at his sister.

"Why not? It's a great story and I'm sure Merlin and Gwen would love to hear it." Morgana pouted her lip and batter her eye lashes. Merlin knew that Arthur didn't fall for that stuff but he guessed Arthur would let her share anyway.

"You'll just tell them when I'm not around so you might as well do it whilst I'm here and can correct you," Arthur sighed.

So Morgana started telling the two servants what Arthur had done when a lady from Mercia had visited. She'd been the same age as Arthur and he'd made it his mission to woo her. Except that it seemed Arthur was terrible at wooing women and she'd left promising to never return.

The three laughed for ages as Morgana retold the story of how Arthur had tried to organise a meal for the two. But the lady had an allergic reaction to Arthur's favourite meal. Even Arthur chuckled a little.

"And since then Arthur has never pursued a woman from Mercia ever again. The end," Morgana finished.

"You're looking a little red there, sire." Merlin pointed out whilst trying to contain his laughs.

"It's just a little hot out here, Merlin. Make yourself useful and fill up my water skin." Merlin grinned before taking his and Arthur's water skin over to the lake.

Merlin had just finished filling up the prat's water skin when he heard light footsteps behind him. "Just me, Merlin." Gwen's voice sang in his ear.

"Morgana sent you here, right?" He smiled up at her as she knelt down next to him to fill up hers and lady's water skin.

"Yeah," she breathed. They worked in quiet until Merlin had himself a fine idea.

Gwen felt a splash on her face and looked up to see Merlin's innocent face. She splashed him back harder as they both laughed and they began splashing each other.

"I'll get you for that." Gwen was already soaked and Merlin barely wet. Until she pushed him in the lake. The maid laughed until she realised that Merlin hadn't come up. "Merlin?" She leaned over the edge and looked in but she only saw the dark blue of the lake. "Merlin, where are you?" Gwen called out again as she flailed around in the water for him.

Suddenly, something pulled her in and she screamed as she fell into the water. When Gwen resurfaced she saw Merlin laughing at her to the point where he out of breath.

"That wasn't funny," she exclaimed. Gwen slapped his arm and hugged him. "I thought you had died," she whispered. The maid latched on to him and she felt his arms come around her.

"I'll always be here, Gwen." The dark-skinned servant brought her head up to gaze into Merlin's cerulean eyes. Just like before, Gwen became lost in them and mesmerised by how much they revealed about him. She leaned in ever so slightly and Merlin closed the gap between their lips.

Her lips were soft and he found himself eager for more. However, he stayed gentle and patient as he cupped her cheek with one hand; the other came to her waist and brought her closer to him. The kiss itself was filled with innocence and inexperience before it finally ended. They just stared at each other then smiled, almost glowing in radiance, and moved out of the lake. Their hands subconsciously entwined.

"Woo!" A shout brought them out of their moment and they turned to see the two royals. "About time, Merlin." Arthur shouted. He smiled and they both stared at the ground, their faces flushed bright red.

"Gwen, you're going to tell me all about that brilliant kiss when we get back." Morgana seemed more excited about it than Gwen, and Merlin was still trying to recover from the idea that he had just kissed Gwen.

"So, you spied on us?" Merlin finally managed to splutter out.

"Well when you put it like that it sounds bad. But yes, yes we did," Arthur stated, looking rather proud of himself. "Anyway, I'm up for going in that lake." Arthur sprinted off the edge and Merlin quickly jumped in and made a splash behind him.

"Come on, Gwen!" Merlin called out to her. "We we're both wet anyway."

"I think we have to help them out, Merlin." Arthur gave him a nudge and the two ran out of the water and toward the girls. They tried to run but Merlin and Arthur ran too fast. Merlin lifted Gwen bridal-style and Arthur threw Morgana over his shoulder whilst she kicked and cursed. This amused the other three.

Merlin and Arthur chucked themselves in whilst they held on to the two girls and the four came up and laughed. Morgana initiated a water fight and soon the four were throwing water all over each other.

However, across the lake a set of eyes watched them. The man smiled and jotted down his findings on a piece of parchment. His boss would indeed be pleased with the leverage he'd discovered.

A little later, Merlin told the others he had to check on the horses. This was a lie although checking on the horses wasn't a bad idea right about now. He could kill two birds with one stone. Merlin wasn't an idiot and he'd had enough of people thinking he was. He'd seen the spy as soon as they had entered the forest.

The spy hid behind a bush and Merlin ran and turned left sharply but instead of walking down the path he turned again and hid behind a tree. He smiled as he watched the spy run past him. He could let the spy go but he needed to send a message to the boss, whether it was Agravaine or not.

"Hey there," Merlin greeted casually. The spy spun around and it was obvious that he hadn't expected to be caught. "I saw you spying on me." Merlin's eyes glowed and the spy was forced back a few feet.

The spy said nothing but got up and tried to run away. Merlin's eyes glowed again as he spoke a few words, **"** **Brytengrúnd and stefn Néadhæs** **mé.** **"** Roots shot up from the ground and ensnared the spy's arms and legs. Merlin strolled up to face the now- trembling man and grinned. He moved his head so that his mouth moved directly over the spy's ear.

"If your boss tries to spy on me again or tries to come after me or my friends, I won't be very pleased." Merlin's voice was low and deep. For someone with such a gangly appearance he could be very intimidating. "You see, I have a rule. I don't kill. It's not right and it never has been. However, I will do anything to save my friends. So if Agravaine…" The spy's breath hitched and Merlin was surer than ever that he was behind this. "Likes his head where it is then he will stay away." Merlin retracted the roots and the spy dropped to his knees on the floor. "Run." Merlin said and that was all the spy needed to hear as he bolted up and sprinted away.

Once the four friends arrived back at the castle, Arthur and Morgana left to attend a late evening council. Gwen offered to help him bring the four horses into the stables, which he gladly accepted.

"Merlin." Agravaine appeared. He turned to see the serious face of the lord and Merlin felt pleased that his stupid sly grin was wiped off his face.

"Gwen, leave us please," Merlin asked, but it came out as more of an order. Gwen looked between the two worriedly before she left.

"So you figured it out," Agravaine stated and Merlin nodded wordlessly. "How?" The lord asked, intrigued.

"The people you employ are terrible at their jobs," Merlin replied. "What now?"

"Well, you can't accuse me of being the leader of an underground crime organisation. No one would believe you," Agravaine pointed out and Merlin conceded he was right.

"We've established you can't get rid of me either." Merlin smirked. "You will lose Agravaine," Merlin said seriously before he walked past him.

"Be careful Merlin. I might not be able to get rid of you but those that are closest to you are not as well equipped as you are," Agravaine retorted.

"You got my message. You know what will happen." Merlin clenched his fists; he was keeping all of his anger inside so he didn't release it on Agravaine.

"I received the message. I just wonder if you can follow through." Agravaine strolled past Merlin, hitting his shoulder as he passed him.

Now the game was real.

 **Translations:**

" **Earth and root obey me"**


	7. Kidnapped

The sun had barely moved beyond the rolling hills and Merlin was already making his way and toward his master's chamber. He allowed his body to take him to his destination as he thought about his life right now.

It had been seven months since he'd taken up the cloak and Merlin was pleased with how everything had been working out. He had a good friend in the Prince, another in the Princess and the closest friend he's had since Will, Lancelot. Lance and he had grown close during their time on the streets, protecting the innocent. Merlin knew that once their job was done and Agravaine behind bars, Lance and he would continue to grow closer in Camelot.

Another person kept popping up in his mind. Gwen was a great person and someone he could easily find himself growing old with. She was kind, compassionate and very pretty but not only that she was also highly intelligent and very wise for someone of her age and station. She seemed perfect.

Agravaine's warning had kept him on high alert for the better part of two months. Merlin started to think his threats empty but the nagging feeling to be near Gwen did not stop. Another part of him argued that Agravaine wouldn't dare attack anyone Merlin cared about. He'd been warned.

Merlin turned the corner and collided with a small form he caught before they fell. His eyes came up to meet ones he knew well.

"Gwen!" He grinned. "Sorry about that. You know what I'm like." They shared a small chuckle.

"Yes, yes I do." Gwen replied coyly. "Off to Arthur's then?" Merlin nodded and scanned the hallway to see no one around them.

"Yeah, I'll see you later." He gently kissed her lips before walking around the corner toward the Prince's chambers.

Merlin strolled into Arthur's chambers and barely noticed the mess. The leftover food and even the smell went unnoticed now. He opened the curtains and allowed the sunlight to encompass him as he released a breath.

"Good morning sire!" He exclaimed loudly and turned to see the usual angry face of Arthur Pendragon. "I'll grab breakfast whilst you change." The Prince just nodded. He was clearly too tired to comprehend much of anything at the moment.

When Merlin returned he found the Prince just sitting down at the table. Merlin brought the tray over and placed it in front of him before clearing the evening plates and leftover food. He caught Arthur smiling slightly and stopped.

"What is it? What's gotten you so happy?" Merlin smiled brightly. Arthur was under constant pressure to catch The Cloak and Knight Blade and as much as he wanted to lift that burden he also wanted to keep his head. To see Arthur smile genuinely was rare.

"Nothing," Arthur responded, as guarded as ever.

"Come on, you know you can't hide anything from me," Merlin insisted.

"It's nothing, Merlin." Merlin didn't say anything and just stood there waiting. "Oh fine!" Merlin grinned triumphantly. "I was just thinking when you first walked in here seven months ago you had little idea of what to do and were completely useless." Merlin narrowed his eyes and smirked.

"Are you trying to compliment me?" Merlin asked slyly.

"No. I was simply saying that you aren't as useless as you were before. But you're still an idiot and the worst servant in the five kingdoms." They shared a laugh before Merlin left to take the plates back to the kitchens.

When he returned they left for the training fields, which were becoming one of Merlin's favourite places. Lancelot had started coming here to train after Arthur had enquired about how he'd become a smithy. Arthur had met Lancelot a couple months ago after Arthur had commissioned a new sword for himself and they had hit it off pretty well. Merlin usually trained with Lance for a bit after he'd finished polishing Arthur's armour and weapons. It never took that long.

Of course he still had to show how unskilled he was. Luckily Lance had decided they train with swords; Merlin was useless with a sword. He had never bested Lancelot in a sword fight and doubted he ever would.

They practiced a couple steps they'd been developing for the last few weeks. The knights generally left them alone but sometimes they challenged Lancelot. Lance knew he could take out most of the army one on one, but to hide his identity he had to lose. He didn't mind that or faking his inexperience with his sword.

Merlin happily went about his chores for Arthur through the rest of the day. Every so often he got to watch the sun go down. He didn't get to see Gwen much through the day so they always met in the evenings.

"Okay, Merlin, you can go. See you in the morning." Merlin smiled and nodded before leaving. "Oh and Merlin?" Merlin spun on the spot to face Arthur. "Don't stay out too long." His face was faintly red but he still nodded and left.

Merlin ran past all his fellow servants, the nobles and the knights. They were all pretty accustomed to him and knew how to avoid collision with the excited servant. Everyone in the castle knew of his courtship with Gwen and how they spent the evenings together.

He panted heavily in front of Princess Morgana's chamber. He composed himself by combing through his hair and straightening out his neckerchief. It was sort of a ritual before he met Gwen in the evenings. Merlin made to knock but the door opened before he could.

"Come in, Merlin," Morgana said. She smiled as kindly as always. "Gwen was just finishing. Have a drink; you're probably exhausted." She smirked. Merlin didn't know how Morgana knew how he ran all the way here every day just to catch Gwen before she left. But he did know gossip was like a forest fire in the castle.

"Thank you, milady." He poured his own drink and another for Morgana. Gwen didn't drink because she got drunk easily but Morgana could hold her liquor well. When Merlin delivered a sleeping draft to Morgana he would occasionally see a full bottle of red wine on the desk. When he came back in the evening it was usually half full then finished the next night.

"Are you trying to get Merlin drunk again Morgana?" Gwen questioned. Morgana had once tried to get Merlin very drunk whilst the three of them chatted in her chambers one night. She secretly poured more wine into his goblet when he wasn't looking and he never once caught on. Despite finishing the bottle of wine, Merlin acted fine afterwards. Not even tipsy.

"There is no point. It doesn't work," Morgana protested. "He is immune to the stuff." It amused Merlin and Gwen how jealous Morgana sounded.

"I'm not immune. Will and I drank a lot back in Ealdor and I've just built up a very good defence against alcohol." Merlin and Will started at about twelve. Both only had a mother for a parent and Will's mother was never very nice to him anyway. Merlin had been shunned because of his gifts even more then and they just took to drinking. It was in secret though – his mother would kill him if she ever found out.

"I've finished, Morgana," Gwen announced and Morgana let her go whilst nursing the last of her red wine.

"Good night, milady," Gwen and Merlin said in unison.

"Goodnight, and don't do anything I wouldn't do." Morgana cautioned, but Merlin didn't know where Morgana drew the line. She led on so many men he was thinking of buying her a leash from the market.

Merlin and Gwen laced their hands together before they stepped into the ante chamber. Merlin brought his arms around her waist and whispered the teleportation spell.

Just as usual, they found themselves in the middle of the forest only she saw a hamper and blanket just off to the side.

"Celebrating something?" Gwen asked.

"Two months of courting someone as brilliant as you," Merlin retorted smoothly. They strolled over to the blanket, sat against the tree and huddled close. Gwen laid her head on his chest and Merlin's arms came around her waist in a protective hold.

They never said much because nothing ever needed to be said. They were content with each other and that was enough for them. They ate what Merlin had left in the hamper and sat making small idle chatter about their day. It felt rather serene.

Merlin and Gwen teleported back into the antechamber and stepped out, shoulders brushing. Merlin caught the guards' smirks but brushed it off just as quickly. Whatever they were thinking he and Gwen weren't doing it.

"Good night, Gwen," he said warmly.

"Good night, Merlin," she replied with just as much warmth in her voice. She leant in to kiss him and he brought his hands up to cup her cheeks as they kissed gently. They smiled at each other before going their separate ways.

Gwen looked over her shoulder as she did every night and Merlin stopped at the corner to turn to her. His sweet smile was her favourite. His smiles conveyed a lot but his sweet smile always spoke of nothing but care. Merlin then bobbed his head slightly before disappearing behind the corner.

The maid was happy, of course she was. Chamber maids and kitchen girls throughout the castle envied Gwen. Merlin had something that made him rather alluring to everybody; Gwen even thought that she had caught Morgana staring at him training with Lance. Of course she dismissed it. Merlin was with her and not them.

So why didn't it feel that way? They had begun courting after their first kiss two months ago. They had seen each other every day and spent time together when they could. He cared for her, she cared for him and they knew each other so well that nothing had to ever be said. They kissed and hugged and held hands. What was wrong?

Gwen could hardly believe that she had pined for Merlin for three months. Now that they were finally together things didn't feel as good as she'd hoped. She felt no flare, no spark or passion.

Gwen didn't want to lose him so early into their courtship. She watched as he and Lance sprung off into the night to fight murderers and kidnappers. But she had to spend countless hours waiting for him to come back. Although a little worse for wear, Merlin always came back. Then they'd snuggle close and he would make unbreakable promises to her in the darkness.

She'd have to talk to Merlin about this soon.

Gwen came to her hut and quietly entered knowing that her father was probably asleep. She closed the door and exhaled deeply. She never felt peace until she came home.

The brown-skinned girl turned and her eyes widened as she came face to face with her father. She saw the glint of the knife to his throat and his face just as bloodied and bruised as it had been seven months ago when Merlin arrived. She moved back only for the door to open. A man wearing a horrible smirk on his bearded face sauntered in, blocking her way out.

He was a large man and she noticed the sword hilt he clutched. But what stood out the most was his eye patch. The scar it covered peeked just outside of it but his features were still covered by shadow.

"Hengist," she whispered. Merlin and Lance had told her all about Hengist and how he'd tried to thwart their plans to save the druids.

"That's me." His twisted smirk got even wider although she didn't know how that was possible. "If you want your father to live then you will come with me." Hengist obviously knew her well. Gwen had already figured this linked to Agravaine's warning to Merlin two months ago. They'd capture her, he'd come, they'd kill him. They would probably kill her afterwards.

She followed without a word and gave her father a brave smile. She hoped her brother, Elyan, would come back to Camelot and look after their father. She didn't know how he coped being apart from his family. Gwen knew that she wouldn't be able to.

"Don't find me," Gwen prayed in the night as the moonlight reflected off of her glistening tears.

The dark gruff voice of his dreams didn't visit often but when it did he always said the same thing. Except for tonight…

 _Protect him…Find her…They were meant to be…Let her go…Fulfil your destiny…_

That mantra repeated constantly in his head. Merlin knew that it had to be important, that it meant something important but he just couldn't figure out what.

 _Merlin…Merlin…Merlin…_

The voice got louder and louder. Merlin bolted up and expected to see Gaius berating him for being late to his serving duties again but instead he came face to face with Lancelot.

"Merlin, something terrible has happened!" Lancelot exclaimed. "It's awful. He's crossed the line. How will we find her? Merlin, please, we have to go now." Lancelot rambled until Merlin politely told him to shut the hell up.

"Now tell me what you're talking about," Merlin said. Lancelot took a few deep breaths and Merlin waited patiently for him to recollect himself.

"Agravaine had Gwen kidnapped."

"He did what?" Merlin gasped.

"Gwen has been kidnapped." Arthur and Morgana stormed into his chamber and Merlin stared at Lance who stared down at the floor sheepishly.

"We need to find her and make whoever did this pay," Morgana decided, sounding desperate. Of course she was right and Merlin meant to do exactly that. He would probably bring Lance with him. Unfortunately, Lance had obviously told Morgana that Gwen had been kidnapped and now they couldn't do it alone.

"We will, Morgana, don't worry." Merlin came over to her and took her hands in his. He rubbed the back of her hands soothingly and smiled encouragingly at her. "As for who is to pay, you won't have to look much further than Agravaine."

"What do you mean by that?" Merlin glanced down at Arthur's hand which gripped his sword hilt tightly. Merlin turned to Lancelot to gauge his reaction and he realised that he might as well tell them. They won't believe him.

"Agravaine runs an underground crime organisation. He is behind every murder, kidnap, bandit raid, theft and whatever else goes on in the kingdom." Merlin heard Arthur unsheathe his sword and Lancelot moved between the two of them.

"How dare you?" Arthur shouted angrily. Morgana also seemed very sceptical of his accusations.

"Believe what you will, Arthur. I honestly don't care. That is how it is and now you are going to leave so I can change and we can save Gwen." Merlin tapped Lancelot's shoulder and he nodded understandingly but shot Arthur a hard glare.

"Where is Lance going?" Morgana asked warily.

"He is going to get the horses so we can start looking for Gwen." Merlin stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

"You know where to start?" Arthur interrupted, obviously not believing Merlin. Merlin knew that Arthur would do anything to defend his uncle and Morgana would probably do the same.

Stupid, stubborn, loyal Pendragons.

"They probably left on horses and we'll simply follow the tracks to wherever they took Gwen." Merlin stated. "Now if you wouldn't mind leaving so I can change and we can get to Gwen quicker." He shooed them all out and shut the door behind them.

The sorcerer exhaled and sunk in front of the door. He curled up into himself, tears flowed freely down his face and he tried desperately to hold in his sobs. Though it was to no avail. It happened, he underestimated Agravaine and gave himself a false sense of security. He should have been more careful but he thought he was so invincible and his enemy had used that against him. It was a mistake that could cost him a dear friend.

The mistake wasn't important right now though; now all that mattered was fixing it. He'd also have to somehow keep Arthur and Morgana from the truth that he was The Cloak and Lancelot Knight Blade. Just a normal day really.

Gwen was thrown into a cell but couldn't find reason to care. She had spent the ride here in a cage and had already exhausted her heart for emotions. She heard the sniggers from behind her and turned to face Hengist. Gwen stayed kneeling though; she was too tired to stand.

"Don't worry, Gwen. Soon your beloved will be here and he will die." He left her with a dark chuckle on his lips. She sobbed hard and was surprised that she had tears left to weep for what awaited Merlin.

"Hey," a voice called out from her left. "Don't cry - it will only ruin your fair beauty." Gwen looked up to see a man, shirtless and scarred. He grinned but in a loveable rogue kind of way.

"Who are you?" Gwen quietly asked.

"I'm a lucky prisoner." He smiled and Gwen found herself smiling back. It was infectious, like Merlin's.

"What's so lucky about being a prisoner?" she asked.

"My next door neighbour." He winked and she could do nothing but blush. "What's your name, neighbour?"

"It's Gwen, yours?"

"Gwaine. That beloved of yours by the way?" She nodded. "I think he'll do it, I think he'll beat Hengist." Gwaine said hopefully. Gwen figured he was only saying it for her benefit but she believed it.

"Yes, I think so too."


	8. The Rescue

Gwen watched sympathetically as Gwaine was thrown back in to his cell. It had been a couple of days since she'd been taken and Hengist had been making Gwaine fight for their food. Luckily Gwaine fought well.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Gwen moved over to the bars that separated their cells to have a closer look at his wounds. "It's deep."

"I'll live." Gwaine panted. He shoved a half-hearted smile on his face as his eyes closed.

She didn't make a sound as Gwaine fell asleep. He would need his rest if they wanted to eat dinner tonight. Instead, Gwen looked out the hole and into the night. She knew Merlin and Lance would be coming but she still hoped they wouldn't. The place was a fortress. Even with Merlin's magic there were too many guards patrolling the forests and scouts further out.

Merlin. She had thought about him ever since she'd been taken. Just moments before she had been kidnapped her thoughts had been clouded with doubt about their relationship. It felt like they didn't belong, that it wasn't quite right. He'd never said "I love you" and neither had she. That thought alone was enough to tell her that maybe they shouldn't be together. But then, who was there to tell them they couldn't make it work? That they couldn't push through it? She had heard plenty of stories about how love overcomes all.

Would it overcome doubt?

Arthur, Merlin, Morgana, and Lancelot stared in shock at the heavily fortified and guarded fortress. They'd gotten here last night and had spent hours watching patrols and guard shift changes. It seemed impossible to take this on with just power and numbers alone. So Arthur had opted to use strategy instead of brute strength.

"That's your plan?" Morgana questioned. Merlin placed a soft hand on her shoulder and gestured for her to quiet down. The patrols were everywhere.

"Yes, I think it will work," Arthur answered.

"Wait, you _think_ it will work?" Morgana seemed more frantic than before which did not bode well for their element of surprise. "That's it, we're dead." The Princess threw her hands up in exasperation.

"Thank you for your faith, dear sister," Arthur retorted. "Look, it's simple. We ambush a patrol, take their clothes and walk back into the tower. Then we just ask someone where the prisoners are." Merlin thought this was a terrible plan. Unfortunately, they didn't have another one.

"Okay, it'll have to do," he interrupted. "We'll wait until tonight for better cover and carry out Arthur's plan." Merlin and Lance turned away from the castle and started to walk back to where they'd made camp. They had found a cave not too far from the fortress and decided that it would be best to stay out of sight there.

Merlin had been very conflicted during the journey to rescue Gwen. He'd tried to decide whether or not Gwen was worth Arthur and Morgana finding out about his magic. He realised she was, so he moved on to wondering where he'd have to run after Arthur declared him an enemy of Camelot. He could go back to Ealdor but that would lead them to his mother and he wouldn't let anyone hurt her. For now he'd have to hope he could free Gwen and keep his magic secret from the royals.

Even Merlin knew how farfetched that sounded.

Darkness had almost fallen. The four of them stayed close for warmth. They couldn't build a fire because it would surely attract the unwanted attention. Arthur and Morgana hadn't spoken to him much after he had accused Agravaine. Arthur had actually shut him out altogether and Morgana hadn't let their conversations last more than a few minutes.

"Do you really believe Agravaine is behind all this?" Morgana's voice rang out. Merlin turned to look at her with a sure expression and nodded. "I believe you."

"What? Morgana how could you possibly believe him?" Arthur protested. They could see the light from the torches leading the patrols so if they wanted to talk about this now they'd have to be quiet.

"I dreamt something strange," Morgana whispered. "I saw flashes of images. Some I remember, others I don't. I dreamt of your kiss with Gwen by the lake. I also saw Agravaine and he was smiling. It looked evil, so unlike him but it just felt right." Merlin stared at her in shock.

"It was just a dream, Morgana. It wasn't real; probably just your mind comprehending what Merlin told you back in Camelot," Arthur reasoned but Merlin had already figured that she'd dreamt it way before then.

"No, I dreamt it two months ago. It was the night before Merlin and Gwen had their first kiss." Merlin knew that wasn't possible. It couldn't be. Was it magic?

"That's not possibl," Lance breathed. "It's not, is it?" He turned to Merlin but he could only shrug helplessly.

"Do you think the Cloak would know what to do about my dreams?" Merlin didn't know how to answer, since that was him. However, she and Arthur could not know that. It would be detrimental to him, Lance, Gwen and Gaius.

"He'd probably kill you first," Arthur snorted. Merlin found himself gripping the quarter staff he was given in Camelot quite tightly. He couldn't use his own because that would link him to the Cloak. Fortunately no one had ever seen the symbol on the staff whilst the Cloak wielded it.

"Why do you say that?" Merlin retorted through gritted teeth. Lance had already gripped Merlin's forearm to stop him from doing anything stupid.

"He's a sorcerer. Easy deduction really." That made Merlin's blood boil more than anything.

"Says the man who leads patrols on innocent, unarmed and peaceful druids." Merlin raised his voice, which earned him a glare from Lancelot and Morgana.

"Magic corrupts, Merlin." He stated like it was an obvious fact. "I was saving those people from their own destruction." Merlin's hands trembled and he stuck them in his pockets.

"Your eyes are flickering gold," Lance whispered into Merlin's ear. Merlin quickly stared at the cave floor whilst taking deep, heavy breaths. Arthur couldn't really believe that, could he?

"Tell me, outside of what your father told you, what do you really know of magic?" Merlin questioned. "Isn't the fact that the Cloak goes out every night to protect the people of the streets enough evidence to suggest that magic isn't evil?"

"He has an ulterior motive."

"Just leave it," Lancelot whispered. Merlin nodded and forced a smile onto his face. Hopefully Arthur would interpret that as an agreement to what he had said and stop talking before Merlin lost all control.

It wouldn't be long now. They'd leave the cave, ambush the nearby patrol, and walk into the castle. Then they would save Gwen.

It would be fine.

"Good evening, Guinevere." The maid scoffed at Hengist, who towered over her from behind the bars. "Not in the mood to talk?" She looked away and saw Gwaine still sleeping. "That's too bad." He chuckled and her cell opened.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked.

"To the group imprisonment cell," he called from over his shoulder. "Don't worr,y you won't be alone."

They must have found Merlin and Lance. Gwen began to cry as she was led away to her new cell. Tears slipped down her cheeks and despair began attacking her heart. They'd all be killed and then no one would find them.

"You're such a clotpole!" Merlin shouted. The plan had been working; they were inside and no one knew their identities. But Arthur and his massive ego had to go and punch a soldier because he mocked the King. Now they were being dragged to God knows where.

"I had to defend my father," Arthur stated. He had started to fight the men that restrained him but one threat to Morgana shut him up fast.

"Merlin, calm down. It's not his fault," Lancelot tried to reason with him, but he himself did not sound convinced Arthur's actions were warranted.

They were thrown into a prison cell and shackled to the wall but Merlin noticed one spare left.

"Greetings, gentleman, and Lady, of course." Hengist. The disgusting piece of filth sauntered in and Merlin felt his magic at his fingertips. He couldn't let it go though. Arthur and Morgana would know and that would be bad for everyone.

"Hengist," Lance spat.

"Hello, Lancey. It's the Prince and Princess also; I wasn't expecting such a fine catch." Hengist turned to Morgana and trailed his fat finger down her cheek.

"Get off me, you oaf!" Morgana screamed as she tried to break free of her shackles.

"You should be nicer to me, I might even tell you who the Cloak is." He looked pointedly at Merlin and the servant could do nothing but glare back.

"Who is he?" Arthur demanded. He tried to free himself from his shackles but they were solid metal. They couldn't get out of them without a key or the aid of magic.

"Not yet. We need to get everyone together first." Gwen fell inside and stumbled to the floor. They all shouted in rage as she was shackled to the wall as well. "Shut it or she dies." He held a knife to Gwen's throat and Merlin had real trouble holding in his magic.

"So," Merlin began. Everyone was silent and looking his way. "What's it like being Agravaine's lap dog?" he questioned. Merlin saw the reaction easily on his face. "Yes, I know your boss." Merlin was grinned from ear to ear now. "Want to confirm it for everyone here?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Hengist stated. "Please get comfortable because you'll be down here for a while." He and his guards left and the room became silent with questions that screamed out into nothingness.

"See?" Arthur looked at Merlin with a hardened glare. "Agravaine isn't responsible." Merlin knew Arthur had seen the reaction; he had hunter's senses.

"Don't be thick Arthur," Morgana moaned. "You saw it, I saw it, we all saw it. Agravaine is against us." Arthur didn't say anything and instead began staring the other way.

"Are you okay, Gwen?" Lance asked from across the room.

"I'm fine." She looked to all four of them then down at the floor. "You shouldn't have come for me."

"Yes, we should," the four of them said in unison.

"I am just a maid-"

"You are our friend," Merlin said.

"Look – Merlin, I don't know how to say this, dangling from shackles and all but-"

"Hey, don't worry, I understand." Merlin smiled.

"Wait, you do?" Gwen looked hopeful, maybe this would make what she wanted to say easier.

"Yes, you're scared but we'll get out, don't worry." Gwen turned her face so Merlin couldn't see the horrified expression on her face. To tell the truth, she was scared. But being trapped under ground with no way out, Gwen realised she didn't really love Merlin, not romantically.

"No, Merlin, I am scared but I want to tell you that…" As she scanned the room she could see that Morgana, Lancelot and even Arthur had realised what she was about to do. Only Merlin, who smiled with slight confusion, crushed her right now.

"Tell me what?" Merlin asked.

"Merlin, don't be thick," Arthur said, but Gwen could see even he felt pained by Merlin's obliviousness.

"Merlin… I don't love you, I thought I did but I was wrong." Silence hung in the air, suspended in infinite time.

"What? But what we have? Everything we said to each other!" Merlin shouted all of a sudden.

"What we've said to each other? It's been two months and we haven't said "I love you" yet. This doesn't feel right. I love you like a brother and I think that you are meant for another." Merlin's fists scrunched as he fell back against the wall. He had to control his magic.

Silence hung over them as each settled into their own thoughts. They thought about the people they were leaving behind in Camelot. So many knew each of them and now they were stuck here because of Agravaine.

How could it get any worse?

"Hello again." Hengist's large form stepped out from the entrance. "You haven't forgotten about me now have you? We have some secrets to spill." His mad grin was chilling but Merlin refused to flinch as the man came closer to him.

"I do not care for your secrets Hengist," Morgana responded. "I don't care who the Cloak or Knight Blade is. They have protected the city for seven months and I can tell you for sure they will continue to do so." Merlin didn't feel as sure as Morgana seemed to be, but if it did come down to it he'd use magic. They would not die for him.

"I think you might care a little." He waved his knife in the air teasingly. He smoothed it down the side of Lancelot's cheeks. "What if the Cloak was in this room right now?"

"Well, he isn't," Gwen protested.

"But he is!" Hengist declared. "And you know it." Merlin grimaced as the two royals stared at Gwen.

"Gwen?" Morgana's voice sounded from next to her. "Do you know who the Cloak is?" Gwen didn't move or speak but it was clear Morgana had her answer. "Don't tell him," she stated and Merlin felt grateful to Morgana.

"Oh why not? You'll only be confirming what I already know." Hengist trailed the knife along the wall beside her head.

"Why do you need her to confirm it if you already know?" Lance interjected.

"Because it's so much more fun this way." His triumphant grin made Merlin's blood boil. He could do nothing. He was helpless for the first time in five months, helpless and vulnerable. "Who is the Cloak, Guinevere?" He trailed the knife slowly down her cheek and Gwen's sobs had seemed magnified by ten as they watched in tense anticipation.

"I don't know," she whispered hoarsely.

"Really?" Hengist pulled back, angered by her defiance. He turned and shoved the knife into Lancelot's leg. He gasped out in agony and groaned as the knife came out of his flesh. They all stared in shock at the impulsive move. "How about now?"

"Leave him alone. He has nothing to do with this. He's just a smithy," Morgana pleaded, but by the look on Hengist's face he wasn't going to stop.

"Is he really? I was told that Lancey here," he tapped Lancelot's cheek with the side of his knife, "is Knight Blade."

"You were obviously told wrong," Merlin said.

"You would say that. You and the Cloak are rather close, or so I've heard." Merlin stared angrily at the man in front of him. "Almost like you're the same person," he whispered just loud enough for all of them to hear.

"That's ridiculous," Merlin shouted. "I know nothing of the Cloak." He glanced between Lance and Gwen.

"I think you're lying," Hengist sneered.

"I think you're delusional. Go run back to Agravaine!" Merlin swung his leg up and around and kicked him hard in the face. Hengist grabbed the side of his own face and Merlin smirked as he saw a trail of blood run from his nose.

"That's it! Cloak or not you will pay for that." Hengist bolted toward him and in one swift moment the knife entered his stomach.

Merlin gasped as the steel drove into his stomach. Gwen's and Morgana's screams went silent as unbelievable pain encompassed all his senses. Even the shouts and threats of death to Hengist all blended together as just random noise. He could feel his magic responding but still kept it at bay, not trusting himself to use it without being seen.

His vision blurred as two whirlwinds appeared in the cell. He tried to stay awake, to keep his eyes open and he felt two bodies either side of him keeping him from falling as his shackles broke. Then everything faded to black…

 _Merlin didn't know where he was. He couldn't see anything. He gazed around, trying to find some sort of indication of a place, and a flicker of light flashed before him. He followed it cautiously and readied his magic to defend himself._

" _Do not be afraid, young warlock." He recognised that voice. It was the voice that sometimes spoke in his mind at night._

" _Who are you?" Merlin questioned._

" _One day you will know me much better. But for now you know me as Kilgharrah."_

" _Where am I?" Merlin asked. He had an inkling but wanted to be sure._

" _You're dead."_

" _Don't sugar-coat it or anything." He smiled a little._

" _You do not have to choose death, young warlock." His voice sounded the same as it always had been. Loud, gruff and powerful with unspoken wisdom intertwined in his carefully chosen words._

" _Why do you call me that, 'young warlock,' I mean?"_

" _That is what you are. You were born of magic and are very young." Merlin was seventeen. He didn't think he was 'very young', but he had more important things to ask._

" _What did you mean, I 'don't have to choose death?' Death isn't a choice. It just happens."_

" _You aren't quite dead." That was a relief. "You are merely close to it."_

" _Oh – only close to it, am I? That's reassuring," Merlin retorted._

" _It should be. You are part of a bigger world than that of a vigilante. But that persona will come to define a part of you one day. To be part of that bigger world you must live," Kilgharrah stated._

" _I doubt I am really needed for a 'bigger world'. I'm no one special." Kilgharrah chuckled._

" _You will understand some day, young warlock."_

" _What is this 'bigger world'?" Merlin enquired._

" _You are not ready to know that yet. Would you not rather concentrate on not dying?" He had a point._

" _Fine, how do I not die then?"_

" _It's quite simple. You must think of those most loved by you and hold onto them like a rope pulling you from death."_

" _Just think about those I love, right?" Kilgharrah made an affirmative sound and Merlin breathed – or not breathed, he wasn't sure – in heavily._

 _He closed his eyes slowly and his brow furrowed as he pictured all those knew and loved like no other. The first person who came to mind was his mother, he thought about how she worried about him and how she loved him unconditionally. He thought of his childhood friend, Will, the one who always protected him from the children who would try to hurt him because of his magic. Then Gaius, like the uncle he never had. Morgana and Gwen, the friends he never had and Arthur, a man he respected a lot despite his views on magic, installed in him by his tyrant father. Finally, he thought about Lancelot, possibly his closest and best friend in the entirety of the five kingdoms._

 _Just as Merlin felt himself pull away from the darkness he heard fleeting words that just managed to reach his ears._

" _Protect him…Protect him…Protect him…" He still didn't know who 'him' was._

Merlin's eyes scrunched shut as light attempted to open his eyelids. They fluttered slightly as they tried to open. When they finally did, he saw he was in a tent and not alone. Lancelot was right next to him, sleeping on another bed. Another man on Merlin's also slept. He saw the stranger had picked up a few scars of his own. Merlin put a hand to his chest to find his shirt gone.

What if Arthur or Morgana saw his scars and bruises? How could he possibly try to excuse that? They must've worked it out.

He jumped as someone – two familiar someones – came into the tent. The movement caused him to groan and the two druids whom he had saved with Lancelot pushed him back onto his bed.

"You're awake. That's good," the elder said.

"Where am I? Where are Arthur, Morgana and Gwen?" He started to look around frantically but the druids held him down.

"They are outside of the camp," the younger said. He was no more than ten at the most. _They were in a druid camp?_ "They weren't comfortable inside." _Of course Arthur and Morgana weren't._

"Did they see my scars? Do they know? They can't know. They'll hate me." Merlin pled as he grabbed onto the end of their sleeves.

"They have no knowledge of anything. Just go back to sleep, Merlin. We will watch over you." They got up to leave but Merlin suddenly remembered something important.

"Where's Freya?"

"She has moved on to a different camp. They reside in Nemeth. Do not worry - the King there does not hunt us and recently neither has Camelot, but I think you know why that is." Merlin nodded wordlessly. He lay back down on his bed and allowed sleep to claim him.

When he next woke he lay on the back of a horse. He glanced up to see Arthur's smiling face and Merlin couldn't help but smile back before he dropped back out of consciousness.

When he woke up next he was in the physicians chambers.

"You're awake!" A female voice exclaimed. Two arms wrapped him up and he instantly felt his whole body relax as he allowed the action to comfort him. "I was so worried." She pulled away to reveal…Morgana?

"Where's Gwen?" he asked on instinct.

"She's gone home." Realisation dawned on him. What they had said to each other in the prison cell, how they had ended it. He could hardly believe it. He thought they would grow old together but she thought differently.

"Right. That makes sense." He rubbed his head slowly but stilled as he felt her hand wrap around his.

"What Hengist said in the cells -"

"Lies. All lies, Agravaine thinks the Cloak is me because he knows I'm not around in the evening," Merlin interrupted.

"What do we do about him?" Morgana asked. Honestly, this was a whole new side of Morgana he had never seen. She looked lost, vulnerable and nervous by the way she never met his eye. It felt strange to say the least.

"What does Arthur think?"

"He hasn't come out of his room since we got back." Merlin figured Arthur was just trying to rationalise everything to fit with what he knew.

"We can't let Agravaine know that you know about him. He could move his plans forward to make sure he isn't stopped by anyone – even the Cloak." They looked at each other in worry both very aware of what could happen if someone with criminal connections like Agravaine came to the throne.

"So what is it? What do we do?" Morgana was frantic. Her people were in danger from Arthur's uncle.

"Well, for now, nothing can change in yours or Arthur's behaviour. Agravaine will suspect that you have figured it out, but if you both keep up pretences then you should throw him off," Merlin explained.

"What about the Cloak? You seem to know a lot about magic." Morgana eyed him warily.

"Why would you say that?" Merlin replied tugging on a loose thread on his sleeve.

"I saw the anger in your eyes in the cave, before we were going to save Gwen. When Arthur explained how he thought he was saving the magic users he killed."

Merlin bit back a retort. "Do you believe that?" he said.

"No, I think Arthur has been manipulated by his father for far too long. I see the Cloak for whom he is." Morgana stood tall, every bit the Princess that she was.

"And whom, may I ask, is that?" The young sorcerer replied, clearly intrigued in her answer.

"He is a hero," Morgana said with a smile. "Not just to those with magic but to the people on the street. Have you seen how the people react, Merlin? The purge of magic has been going on for twenty years! Yet most of the people do not run in fear of him, they welcome him and they support him because even they can see. They can put their prejudices aside and see he is doing good. The Cloak gives people hope for a better day, one where Agravaine is gone. The Cloak is a hero."

"I'm sure if he were here he'd be very grateful for your words Morgana." Merlin looked away as a small smile came to his lips.

"Yes, I'd like to think so too. Anyway, what do you think the Cloak will do?" Merlin sat and thought; his eyebrows scrunched up as he tried to come up with a suitable reply.

"I think he will continue to protect the city from Agravaine's thugs. Then when the time is right and the Cloak manages to figure out Agravaine's plans, he will stop him and save the kingdom." Merlin nodded to himself, liking the idea of such an achievement.

"You have a lot of faith in the Cloak, Merlin," she quipped. "It's rather cute." Merlin's cheeks reddened.

"Thank you, milady." An awkward silence arose, neither really knowing what to say at this moment.

"I should be going." Merlin felt her hand leave his and his whole body seemed to grow cold but he had no idea why. "Get better soon." She waved lightly at him as she opened the door and he returned it.

"Morgana," he called out to her. She swiftly turned and smiled kindly at him. "Thank you for staying with me."

"You're welcome." He thought he saw a blush but that couldn't be right. A Princess blushed because of him? No. That just wasn't possible.

Then she was gone and Merlin was alone.


	9. Adrift

Agravaine tapped on the desk impatiently. He raised his head toward Hengist and saw he looked just as he had one hour ago; his hands behind his back, head down and body stock still. To say that Agravaine wasn't pleased with the outcome of the maid's kidnapping two months ago would be an understatement. Hengist knew that now.

Despite his incompetence, Hengist was still useful to Agravaine. He was a smart, calculative and conniving henchman. The fool would live a little longer but now he needed another approach to resolve the vigilante problem.

A swirl of wind appeared in front of him. Agravaine barely paid heed to the blonde beauty who stepped gracefully from mystical winds. He savoured his goblet of blood-red wine.

"There had better be a good reason for my presence here Agravaine." Her silky tone was music to his ears. When he sat on the throne she would be his Queen.

"Ah Morgause, don't you look beautiful this eve," he smiled. Morgause did know how to dress when on business; she had been taught by the best.

She always wore seductive red. Her dress splayed out around her, her arms covered by a light, see-through material. Agravaine thought of how he'd take her harshly and roughly. Morgause would take it, he'd make her.

"Get to the point, Agravaine. I do not want to be here very long," she replied.

"All business no pleasure, Morgause, how very unsporting," he teased. He tried to ignore her obvious disgust at his actions. If he were on the throne she would jump at the chance to be Queen.

"I take no pleasure in being in the same kingdom as you, let alone the same room. Now get on with it." Agravaine stood and sauntered around to the front of his desk.

"Leave us, Hengist," he ordered. Hengist complied and the only sound heard was the door clicking shut. Agravaine turned back to Morgause "Have you heard of the Cloak?" he asked her.

"Of course, every kingdom has heard rumour of the vigilante duo, though many believe them to be just that, a rumour. I hear he is bad for business, hmm?" she smirked. "What would the mistress think of your failure?" Morgause laughed.

"I will not fail. If I do then you won't have done your job." Agravaine stood at his full height and despite how he towered over her she wasn't the least bit fazed.

"What is my job, Agravaine?" Morgause snapped.

"Why it is simple, my dear Morgause. You must kill him."

"He is a user of magic. I hear he is also quite powerful; his ability to teleport so quickly with so little space in-between is extraordinary in itself." She moved past him and looked out onto the window down onto the courtyard. "It would be quite difficult to capture such a man."

"What do you want in return?" Agravaine huffed.

"No interference. Let me do what I think is best and how I think it best to be done." Morgause turned to him; she stared straight into his eyes as if daring him to decline her.

"Of course, my dear." He walked over to the decanter and began pouring himself another goblet of wine. "Would you like some, Morgause?" He turned to see the window open and the beautiful woman gone. "Next time young witch, when I am king." The lord chuckled darkly to himself as he took a sip of wine from his goblet.

Merlin knew he'd be coming soon, he'd be angry for sure. This would be the sixth time Merlin had done it and he doubted that he could do it for much longer. But he couldn't let what happened two months ago happen again.

"Seriously, Merlin? This is the sixth time you've put me to sleep!" Lancelot stormed into the physicians chambers.

"I've told you before that it's for your own good. Last night's mission was too dangerous for you. I had to go alone," Merlin replied calmly.

"Too dangerous? Before Hengist we did those jobs together all the time and came out unscathed most of the time. I'm fine. Yes I was stabbed but so were you and I don't see you hanging up the cloak." Lancelot gripped the table until his knuckles turned white.

"But I have magic-"

"That doesn't matter, Merlin. So what? I want to be out there helping people no matter what; it is my life to give, not yours," Lancelot reasoned.

"No, Lancelot! You were hurt, Gwen was hurt, and Morgana and Arthur were hurt. I can't let that happen again. It was my fault!" Merlin raised his voice in an attempt to get Lancelot to back down.

"It wasn't your fault! I chose to become Knight Blade, Gwen chose to help you and Morgana and Arthur chose to help save Gwen." They were face to face now and Merlin could feel Lancelot's anger resonating off of him. Ever since Merlin started to using spells to keep Lancelot away from helping him Lance had been a lot angrier than usual. But at least he wasn't dead.

"This conversation is over, Lance, and I've got duties to attend to." Merlin pushed past him and made for the door.

"You know what, Merlin?" Merlin stopped and looked back over his shoulder. "You speak of equality for those with magic but you need to realise that people without it are just as entitled to their own choices as you."

Merlin said nothing. He left the chambers and slammed the door behind him as he marched toward the Prince's chamber. Arthur needed to be dressed for the feast tonight celebrating Uther's day of birth. Unfortunately, in his anger, he missed the woman around the corner dressed in red. She smirked before disappearing.

Merlin dressed the Prince quickly and efficiently, which Arthur questioned. But he said nothing more than he wanted Arthur to be ready for his father's day of birth. Merlin just wanted to don his cloak.

Despite the rain, Merlin stood tall on his bell tower as he surveyed the town below completely unnoticed. His unruly hair clung to his forehead as droplets of rain fell onto his nose, causing him to twitch incessantly. The cloak stayed dry though as water ran off its surface and Merlin smiled at his ingenuity, having found that spell early on in his escapades.

The Cloak opened his senses using magic. His eye-sight magnified and he could easily see the regular trouble makers in the tavern. His hearing expanded as he heard the faint smashing of metal from the smithy. He could also smell the lavender that Gaius had probably prescribed to someone for their sleepless nights. He couldn't blame them.

It was relatively quiet tonight. It seemed the same most nights nowadays and Merlin liked to think that he and Lance accomplished that with Gwen's aid. Her masks helped immensely, it was just a shame things it turned out the way they did two months ago with both of his friends.

But something felt different tonight. The peace felt constructed and the quiet seemed man made. He brushed it off and decided to do a perimeter search. Merlin leapt from his place and landed onto the battlements with the aid of magic and ran. He ducked and dived past the not-so-vigilant guards and smiled as their heads whipped around just to miss the billow of his cloak.

He wondered, once this was all over, once Agravaine was put on trial and behind bars, once his criminal organisation was destroyed, could he ever really give up being the Cloak?

He frowned at his answer.

A whisper in the night reached his ears. Merlin's head snapped around and he thought saw blood and a pair of golden irises but looked again and saw nothing.

"I must be losing it," he whispered to himself as his gaze travelled to the castle. If it was quiet then he could turn in since there was nothing to do. He may even try to patch things up with Gwen and Lance. They were his two closest friends after all and he had no intention of losing that…

Although on second thought, what did he owe them?

Merlin's fists clenched suddenly and his eyes hardened unexpectedly, even to himself, but he found himself liking this new feeling. This new anger felt good. The Cloak smirked as he disappeared in the night, eyes blood red. But it was Morgause who held the true smirk as her eyes glowed a dark gold.

The celebration was in full swing. Nobles danced along the floor with grace instilled in them since birth. The King sat with an absent expression on his face and seemed to look through the celebratory smiles. The Prince and Princess sat on their thrones either side of the King while Gwen and Lance chatted idly when Gwen didn't have to serve.

"Have you seen Merlin today, Lance?" Gwen pondered.

"Yes." He said snappily.

"He did it again, didn't he?" Gwen stared at him knowingly and Lance nodded angrily. "He's just trying to protect us; he thinks he's doing the right thing." Gwen defended him.

"I know, but that's what's so frustrating. You can't talk someone out of doing something they believe to be right for everyone. It just doesn't work." Lancelot huffed.

"Well, you'll have to think of a way to make him see what he's doing is wrong. At least someone will have to." They stood in thoughtful silence while the party carried on around them.

"Why don't we have a dance to take our minds off Merlin?" Lancelot suggested.

"But I'm serving tonight; I can't just drop everything and dance with you," Gwen protested as Lancelot took her tray of goblets and sat it on the table.

"Of course you can, every princess has to dance at the ball." The comment made her blush as Lancelot led her to the middle of the floor. The couple had no care for the disgusted looks of the nobles. They knew they were close with the prince and princess they couldn't be stopped.

"But I'm not a princess." Lancelot looked at her with a gaze that Merlin never had when they were together- or whatever they had been- and it pulled her in like a sweet-scented flower.

They swayed to the music and he spun her while stepping across the floor to the beat.

"Of course you are," he replied.

Gwen had never really paid much attention to Lance before. She'd been head over heels for Merlin since he'd arrived in the throne room nine months ago. But now Lance just shone - his kindness, his honour, his gentlemanliness, and his handsomeness spoke to her on so many levels.

They both leaned in slightly, breathed each other's breath, smelled each other's smell and were about to close the gap when every single candle went out in a torrent of wind.

Gwen knew it must be Merlin.

Were they all in trouble?

"Hello everyone!" The Cloak bellowed in a maliciously amused tone. Luckily, Merlin used the spell that warped his voice. They had found it a few months ago after a young girl had thought the Cloak and Merlin sounded very similar. "Why wasn't I invited to the party?" A goblet of wine glided into his hands as he walked past the very cautious knights of Camelot.

"Something's wrong," Gwen whispered to Lancelot who took the hint and left to become his alter ego.

"You know, I spend all of my time saving this God-forsaken city and not once have I been thanked, not once." He chuckled darkly which reminded her a little too much of Hengist. "The people of the lower town are grateful but you lot, you just want me dead. Well here I am - take your best shot."

"Oh no," Gwen whispered. Merlin turned to her and she could see his eyes aglow with red fury.

"Seize him!" Agravaine shouted. At once all the knights tried to strike him but they weren't prepared for the power that Merlin unleashed on them.

" **Ástríce** **"** he shouted. A shock wave of power emanated from him as everyone was fle backwards and the windows were shattered into nothing but small particles, like the sand they originated from.

Gwen hit a bench but shakily stood up to see the chandelier ready to crash down on top of her; she covered herself with her hands in reflex.

All of a sudden, she was pushed out of the way and felt herself crash to the floor. She turned just in time to see the chandelier smash on the ground where she once stood. She looked up at her saviour and smiled knowingly as she saw Lancelot through his helmet.

"Ah, well isn't it my old friend, Knight Blade," Merlin cackled, his eyes still fiery red.

"He's enchanted," Gwen shouted at Lance who nodded in agreement. He then looked at Gaius who was just recovering from the power of the shock wave with the help of Arthur and Morgana.

Arthur had no idea what was happening. There he was, at the party- servantless as usual- trying to enjoy himself despite the treachery that stood only a few feet from him.

Agravaine, a traitor. He just couldn't comprehend how or why such things could happen. What had happened to him? Was it magic? It didn't matter but now Arthur knew and so did Morgana, Merlin and Gwen. Agravaine had tried to have them killed and magic had saved them.

Now, the Cloak, whom Morgana, Merlin and Gwen had been convincing him was good, had unleashed more power than he had ever seen… on them! Honestly, ever since Merlin had arrived almost a year ago, his thoughts had whirled out of control. Was magic good? Was it bad? Was it neither? Who knew? Not him, that's for sure and if there's one thing Arthur does not like aside from the tardiness of his servant, it was not knowing.

"Arthur...Arthur! Arthur are you listening to me?" The Prince suddenly came out of his thoughts to see his sister shouting in his face.

"No, I'm sorry. What were you saying?" Arthur looked over to the Cloak who was shouting at Knight Blade. He'd just joined him and seemed to be trying to calm him down. He also thought he heard Gwen and something about enchantments but he'd been recovering from being thrown twenty feet into the wall behind him.

"You need to go to my chambers." Gaius's breathing was ragged. He was lucky; he hadn't been thrown as far as some of the others. "The Cloak is enchanted, I know it."

"How can you be sure?" Arthur protested. "What if these are his true colours?" Gaius looked at him and Arthur slotted all the pieces into place like a jigsaw. "You know who he is, don't you?"

"Yes, but that doesn't matter and no I'm not going to tell you who he is but I will tell you this. He is a good person; he has kept the streets clean for just over nine months now. It is your uncle he must defeat but Agravaine has clearly hired someone to enchant the Cloak," Gaius explained.

"AHHHHHH!" The Prince and Princess turned to see Knight Blade launched across the room.

Merlin's fists clenched and he burnt the benches to cinders instantaneously with a simple sweep of his arm. "See the power that I bear when I have anger fuelling me instead of sickening love and kindness?"

"But it's love and kindness which makes you the Cloak. Listen to me - we have fought together for a long time, almost seven months and there isn't anyone I'd rather fight with. But not like this. Not while your heart is filled with hate." Lancelot rushed at him while Merlin took out his staff, ready to block.

Instead of striking, Lancelot surprised him by sliding beneath him and punching the back of his leg. Merlin went down while Lancelot scrambled to his feet and went to knock him out. He wasn't fast enough as Merlin came around and whacked his side with his staff. Lancelot had no choice but to fight him with his sword as well. He needed to buy time for the Prince and Princess.

Arthur and Morgana burst into the physician's chambers. Morgana listed off the ingredients that Gaius had told them to get. He had never even heard of a physician having such concoctions but Gaius was one of a kind.

"Have we got everything?" Morgana asked frantically.

"I think so."

"Okay, you grind up the toad and I'll get some water on the boil and prepare the rest of the ingredients for mixing," Morgana ordered. Arthur wasn't going to argue with her; they were on the clock and his people were in danger.

Merlin and Lance clashed, blocking and striking, both switching from offense to defence. Lancelot was starting to feel the exhaustion while Merlin hadn't tired one bit. Lancelot knew he was using his magic to fuel him and unfortunately Lancelot could not do the same.

"Please! Stop this madness. Can't you see that you aren't yourself?" Lancelot tried to plead one more time. Arthur and Morgana had not arrived yet.

"I have never felt better, actually. I feel stronger, faster and with more magic than the gods themselves," Merlin cackled. Lance had had about enough of that for one day.

"Hey! Over here," Arthur yelled. He ran up behind the Cloak and jabbed a needle into his neck. But Merlin threw Arthur off of his back, and he went flying into Morgana who'd just come around the corner.

"You think you could stop me with a needle, how wrong you…" The Cloak stumbled. "How wrong – you – were…" The Cloak fell to the ground and Knight Blade quickly grabbed him. His eyes changed from red to their normal shade and his bright smile returned.

"What's going on?" he asked drowsily.

"No time, teleport us out of here now." Merlin heard the urgency in his voice and wasted no moretime.

 **"Bedyrne ús! Astýre ús þanonweard!"** They disappeared in a swirl of magical winds with nothing but shouting royals behind them.

When they landed inside of the physician's chambers, Merlin went limp in his arms. Lancelot knew that so much magic being used in such a short space had exhausted him.

Clap. Clap. Clap. Lancelot spun around, sword held tight, coming face to face with a blonde woman. She was fairly tall and rather slim – much like Morgana and her dress was red, just like the colour of Merlin's enchanted eyes.

"Who are you?" Lancelot demanded as he raised the sword to her throat.

"I am Morgause. I was sent by Agravaine to kill Merlin over there." She gestured to the sleeping warlock, uncaring of the sword inches from her neck.

"Over my dead body. I will not let you harm him," Lancelot defended. He brought himself to his full height to tower over her but somehow her smirk only made him feel smaller.

"Despite how thrilling it would be to end your life, the mistress tells me she wants the boy alive so I won't kill him or you." Morgause moved out of the way of the sword toward Merlin.

"Don't touch him!" Lancelot warned. He was ignored as she traced a finger down his sharp cheekbones.

"Rather handsome, isn't he?" Morgause complimented. "Remember my clemency Merlin; I may need a favour from you yet."

"Who is the 'mistress' Morgause?" Lancelot asked.

"You will know soon enough." With a few mumbled words she was gone leaving a confused Lancelot behind.

"Oh Merlin. I thought Agravaine alone was bad but if he's got more friends in low places then I fear for Camelot." Lancelot dropped his sword and sat on the floor next to Merlin's bed.

"We'll beat 'em," he heard Merlin whisper back.

"Too right we will." Lance patted his shoulder before leaving to take off his armour in Merlin's room.

When Lancelot re-entered the main chambers he gazed over at Merlin and noticed that he had drifted off to sleep. The amount of magic he used tonight was more than he had ever used since donning the Cloak. In that moment, Gwen and Gaius entered the room.

"We could just about slip away," Gwen began. "But it's a riot in there."

"Why? What are they saying?" Lancelot asked.

"Despite the clear evidence that I showed during Merlin's attack that he was enchanted and both Prince and Princess being convinced-"

"Morgana managed to convince Arthur completely, of course," Gwen added.

"-the Cloak is now a number one priority; all the guards in the castle are looking for him," Gaius exclaimed.

"By whose order? What do we do?" Lancelot questioned.

"Agravaine's," Gaius replied.

"Guess he's not too happy with Morgause then." Lancelot chuckled. That earned him a quizzical stare from the physician and maid. "I'll explain once we've dealt with Merlin."

"We need to get him out and fast. I've heard they are going to lock down the castle and do a full sweep, which could take up to two weeks. King Uther has only ever called for something like this once before." Gaius turned away toward Merlin with a grim look on his face.

"When?" Lancelot asked slightly intrigued by this rare occurrence.

"It doesn't matter; we need to send him somewhere and fast." Gaius toddled over to Merlin and bent down beside him. "My boy, you need to wake up." He shook the servant a little until Merlin stirred from his slumber.

"Gaius I don't want to serve Arthur right now, he's a prat," Merlin managed to mumble; the other three in the room chuckled a little between them.

"You need to leave Camelot for a couple of weeks, Merlin." That woke him up. Questions streamed out of him like a torrent of water; they could barely get a word in edge wise until they managed to shout at him to calm down.

"But why do I have to leave? I like it here!" Merlin looked frantic and horribly distraught. "I'll give up being the Cloak if you let me stay!"

"Merlin you're coming back!" Gaius snapped at him obviously tired from the boy's yammering. "They're doing a full sweep of the castle and the citadel and you need to get out of here to put you as far away from Agravaine as possible. He knows that you're getting help from Lancelot and Gwen so Lance will have to go with you."

"What about me?" Guinevere asked. Gaius knew she could not join them so she needed a different kind of protection.

"You need to tell Morgana and make sure you are with her at all times." At their shocked faces he clarified further. "I mean you need to tell her that Agravaine will look for you because he knows you're associated with the Cloak, not who he is or anything more than that."

"But where will we go, Gaius?" Lancelot asked, already packing spare clothes for Merlin and taking the spare clothes he kept in Merlin's room out and into another bag.

"Gaius?" Suddenly, Arthur and Morgana barged in only leaving enough time for Lancelot to hide the bag and Merlin to cover his face. Gaius, Lance and Gwen traded looks as they tried to come up with an excuse to why the Cloak was laying in Gaius's bed.

"Sire, I implore you to be patient with your judgement of us." Gaius spoke diplomatically in an attempt to stop Arthur from stabbing Merlin – not that he knew it was Merlin.

"Patience?" Arthur started. "You expect me to be patient with my judgment when I catch all three of you harbouring a sorcerer that just caused mayhem?"

"I did what?" A warped deep voice called out. They turned to see Merlin in his cloak obscuring his face but Lance could tell he was angry he wasn't told sooner.

"We were going to tell you but we had to get you out first!" Lancelot pleaded with him. They couldn't cause a ruckus right now - the entire citadel was about to be searched.

"I had a right to know that I hurt people!" he shouted and outside thunder sounded and lightening shot the ground.

"Don't pretend like you didn't know!" Arthur interjected raising a sword to the Cloak.

"Arthur, you know he didn't! We gave him the injection to stop the enchantment." Morgana moved in front of the sword.

"Get out of the way Morgana. I must apprehend him, for-"

"For whom Arthur? Our father? He is under Agravaine's enchantment. The uncle we thought we could trust with the King's affairs and instead has taken to kidnapping and God knows what." Morgana argued back, not at all fazed by the sword to her chest.

"That's it!" Gwen interjected.

"What is it, Gwen?" Everyone looked at her intrigued to know what she was thinking.

"People have been kidnapped, surely we can find those people and bring them home to their families, and give closure to the ones we cannot." It was a good plan; Merlin pondered on it and decided it would be best if he tried to track them down.

"It's settled then. I will leave immediately, contact Knight Blade, and tell him to come at once." Lancelot smiled and left immediately to grab his spare armour.

"Wait, you can't leave, I have you in my custody," Arthur objected.

"Shut up, Arthur." Morgana retorted. "In fact, pack your things; you're going with them." Everyone stood still in silence as the Princess of Camelot smiled at her idea.

"He is not coming," The Cloak instantly retorted. "He'll kill me in my sleep." Gaius and Gwen nodded in agreement.

"He won't kill you, if he actually wants to save his people. He will realise he needs you and Knight Blade and not kill you." Morgana stared at Arthur for what felt like forever until Arthur nodded and got up to pack his things. At the same time the Cloak whispered something to Gwen who quickly left. The Cloak himself teleported out of the chamber.

"Why did you say that to Arthur, Morgana?" Gaius asked curiously.

"Easy, Arthur needs to get to know the Cloak and Knight Blade. He has to realise they aren't evil and that magic is not evil either." Morgana smiled proudly.

"You are a smart girl, Morgana, very smart, just like your mother." They laughed and began to pack extra supplies for the three travelling buddies.


	10. Road Trip

"And that was when the Prince here jumped you and injected some random concoction in to you – seems unbelievable really!" Knight Blade finished, smiling under his helmet. Luckily that The Cloak could warp his voice too.

"I really did all that?" The Cloak spoke solemnly, not looking away from the trail ahead of them.

Arthur had informed the two vigilantes that this path was well-travelled and the most likely place to start looking for the kidnapped young men, women and children. They headed south, much further than The Cloak or Knight Blade had been before.

"You did," Arthur replied as he trotted beside The Cloak.

The Cloak said nothing as he became lost in thought. If he believed his compatriots then, he'd almost killed everyone in that room, including Gwen, Knight Blade, Arthur and Morgana. He had somehow unlocked incredible power just through anger. Would he ever do it again?

"Hey, are you alright, Cloak?" Knight Blade asked, trotting up to catch the two moving at constant speed.

"I'm fine - let's just keep moving," The Cloak replied determined to carry on. Arthur snorted, causing The Cloak to turn. "Something funny, Arthur?"

"It's Prince Arthur to you, and is that what you call him? Cloak?" The two gave him a curious stare as if he had asked something stupid.

"That is my name, _Prince_ Arthur; do people not call you by your name?" The Cloak smiled under his hood as Knight Blade chuckled.

"Of course, but you obviously have a 'real' name," Arthur clarified.

"And you believe I'd tell you?" The Cloak questioned, rather surprised.

"No, of course not. You know…it doesn't matter." Arthur scowled and picked up speed until he was a few paces ahead.

The three travelled in silence for a few hours, only breaking it when needed. Tensions still ran high between the three, especially between Merlin and Arthur, not that Arthur knew it was Merlin.

"Why did you do it, erm, Cloak?" Arthur said from the front of their group.

"I was enchanted Prince Arthur, you were aware of that, were you not?" The Cloak quipped.

"No, I meant, why did you decide to help the people of Camelot?" the Prince reiterated.

"Well, when I first arrived in Camelot I had no intention or desire to become a vigilante, let alone have a companion and other…accomplices -"

"Gwen, Lancelot and Gaius," Arthur interrupted.

"Yes indeed. They're good people." He would mention himself but thought better of it. Better to be careful and stay alive than be…well, dead.

"I don't know how good people came to associate with sorcerers" Arthur threw back. The Cloak carried on as if he had said nothing.

"I came in to the gates of Camelot – poorer than poor, with only magic at my disposal and saved a woman – Gwen." He chuckled in reminiscence. "I didn't fall in love with the feeling that came over me as I saved her from Agravaine's goons. It was more to do with the vice grip the criminals seem to have over the people. Not one person came out to help her. Not one."

"They were scared; the criminals were armed if I remember rightly," Arthur remarked. The Cloak nodded his head conceding.

"That's true although that doesn't mean much when you live right next to a forge with many swords. I came from a small village, but we managed to drive away many oppressors in my time there." Of course, he couldn't say where he came from, that would easily connect him to Merlin and someone – probably not Arthur – would figure out The Cloak's identity.

"How can I trust that you, a sorcerer, are really here to save the people of Camelot?" Arthur stopped to turn and stare down The Cloak. Their stares didn't waver.

"You can't, Arthur Pendragon but if I didn't want to save people, I wouldn't be here. Oh and I'm a warlock, not a sorcerer." The Cloak quipped.

"What?" Arthur sounded confused.

"I'm a warlock, not a sorcerer. I was born with magic," The Cloak replied.

"Impossible," Arthur stated, clearly in disbelief.

"Believe what you will but that's what I am." The group lapsed into silence once again. It remained unbroken for an hour or so.

"We should make camp here for the night. Cloak can send his message to Gaius while I set up camp," Knight Blade suggested. The other two agreed before dismounting their horses and setting up camp.

The next morning miles north of the travellers, Gaius woke and prepared for his daily rounds. As he trundled about his workshop he thought about how long he could keep being a physician. He was old but the city needed him like it needed The Cloak.

A quiet tap on the window alerted to him and his eyes flicked up to see a black raven eyeing him up with its beady, golden irises. The physician walked over and opened the window; the bird hopped to the window sill and displayed the message wrapped around his foot.

"Well, what do we have here?" Gaius spoke aloud.

"Why don't you share with the rest of the room?" A feminine voice sounded from behind.

Gaius turned, placing the piece of paper behind his back. He relaxed as he saw Gwen and Morgana walk further into the room.

"Milady, I know you are the Princess but please do an old man a courtesy and knock," Gaius reprimanded. They joined him on the bench anyhow.

"I'm sorry, Gaius, what's in the note?" Morgana prompted from across the table.

"The note was sent from The Cloak, I can feel his magic all over it." Gaius unrolled the note. "And what it says is:

 _Dear Gaius, Gwen and Morgana,_

 _I, Knight Blade and Prince Arthur have travelled south a long way, further than I or Knight Blade have ever been. I am convinced we'll find something on the shores of the south once we arrive. We're only another day's ride now._

 _Keep safe and watch Agravaine_

 _The Cloak_

"Is that it?" Morgana pondered, re-reading the note over and over again.

"Yes milady, you must be patient. Not everything can be done with a snap of the fingers, even for those who have magic," Gaius said.

"You're right. Come, Gwen, we have a council meeting to attend in which I'll try not to kill my brother's dearest uncle." She smiled, bittersweet, and turned with a goodbye to Gaius.

The trio in the south rode for most of the day, taking twenty minute breaks for every three hours of riding. They had found cart tracks matching those belonging to the kidnapper's carts and Arthur hadn't let up since.

The sea finally came into sight in the late evening. The Cloak had never seen it before; it was so vast, so blue and quite beautiful. It wasn't like a lake, still and lifeless. It raged as the waves crashed and thrashed around but he didn't have the time to concentrate on that now.

"Look there!" Arthur pointed to a settlement. They saw a platform set up, probably for displaying the slaves. Four carts sat next to it and The Cloak could just about see a few heads poking out of the barred windows. He loathed the sight of guards stuffing their faces with meats and fruits in front of the slaves who he assumed were fed little.

"We have time. It's getting late and we're all too tired to fight now," Arthur stated. There were far too many guards for them to take on at half strength.

"No, we need to catch them now, while they're off guard. They'll be on higher alert tomorrow when the auction's on." Knight Blade argued back quietly as not to be over-heard by any nearby guards.

The Cloak was stuck, both made good points but he really was tired. He felt sore in many places but it could be more difficult to get those carts out tomorrow. How would he even go about doing that?

"Right, we need to know how to pull this off, for that, we'll need time. Knight Blade, whatever we do we'll have to do it tomorrow. Let's find somewhere away from here to camp for the night and we'll make a plan." The three led their horses half a mile away from the settlement and began making plans for the morning when the auction began.

The Cloak woke up early the next morning to the sound of two voices and snippets of conversation drifted to his ear.

"So what's he like?"

"Well, he's the bravest man I know…"

"Really? But he has magic - what has he got to be afraid of?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Well you are the son of the man who has been hunting down his kind for twenty years."

The Cloak didn't feel like intruding on their conversation so he whispered the perception spell and moved unseen from the campsite toward the auction site. When he came upon it, he saw that people had started to arrive: burly looking men, rich looking men and a few prudish-looking noblewomen.

The auction would be starting soon; they'd have to put their plan in to action as soon as possible to make sure everyone got out and back to Camelot. The Cloak decided to teleport down behind the carts so he couldn't be seen. He then moved to each cart, looking in and asking if they were okay and reassuring them that they'd get out. In truth, he didn't know if they could; there were many guards and not so many rescuers, but he'd be damned if he didn't try.

"Excuse me, hooded sir?" A young girl's voice called out to him. She looked young, about 11 or 12. She had blonde hair which looked like it hadn't been washed in several days and looked skinnier than a twig.

"Yes?" he replied.

"Will you save us?" Hope lit up her eyes and resolve hardened in his as he nodded.

"Yes I will, little one, yes I will." Voices belonging to guards came closer and closer The Cloak took this as his cue to leave. He smiled at the young girl and teleported away to his own encampment.

When The Cloak arrived back both Arthur and Knight Blade were both geared up and waiting for him.

"Where did you run off to?"

"It doesn't matter. Do either of you have a plan for how I'm going to get four carts of people out of here without anyone being killed by tomorrow midday?" From the looks on their faces they hadn't thought of anything.

"How _we're_ going to get four carts of people out, I think you mean." Arthur corrected squaring up to The Cloak.

"No, Camelot needs you, not me, so you two are going to stay here, safe, and wait for me to come back with everyone," The Cloak decided. He sat against a tree so he could think.

Knight Blade could see Arthur had been rubbed the wrong way so he told Arthur to cool down while he handled his over-protective partner.

"Hey man, I thought you would've learnt by now," Knight Blade started as he sat beside his friend.

"Learned what?" Knight Blade looked up enough so that he could make out The Cloak's features under the hood. The Cloak was the lucky one; he hadn't had to wear full armour this entire journey.

"You can't do everything alone because you think that your magic makes you invincible and the rest of us weak. You aren't invincible; you will die if you go out there on your own," Knight Blade reasoned.

"I'll be fine-"

"No, shut up for one damn second, Cloak. You will not be fine, you will be dead and we'll have to send your body back to your mother and friend. What do you think that will do to me, or to Gwen and Gaius or even Morgana and Arthur? They will miss you, I will miss you and the people of Camelot will be doomed. So God help me you're going to put your ego aside for one moment and you're going to take us with you." Knight Blade breathed rapidly and a vein popped from the side of his forehead. He'd never beenthis stressed before, what happened? Oh wait…The Cloak happened.

He watched The Cloak get up from where he sat against the trunk of the oak tree. They shared a bright smile and shook hands. Knight Blade knew there and then they'd win the day.

"So, what are _we_ going to do?" The Cloak emphasised and was happy to see Arthur smiling at his change of phrase.

"Honestly, I don't know how we're going to do it. There are four carts, only three of us so maybe we'll have to leave one-"

"No!" Arthur interrupted. "We can't leave anyone behind; maybe we can see if one of people in the carts can ride the fourth cart."

"No, that won't work; they're all too weak to do any sort of hard work. They've only been fed scraps by the looks of them." The Cloak replied, his teeth gritted in annoyance.

"And t the entire place is heavily guarded," Knight Blade added. They all sighed at once.

"Wait a minute. It's a slave trade, right?" Arthur shouted. The Cloak and Knight Blade stepped back, both equally confused.

"Yes, what's your point?" Knight Blade questioned.

"My point is, what is the one thing that a slave needs to be?" The Cloak thought for a second and his eyes lit up in realisation.

"That's brilliant! But which one of us will do it?" The Cloak asked.

The two smiled at each other and looked at Knight Blade and he had a feeling he wasn't going to like this idea.

It was midday. Everyone was ready but the captives were even more heavily guarded than before. This would be difficult but they had to try.

The carts opened and the people, like the living dead, slowly plodded out and lined up in front of five guards. In front of the stands stood several disgusting-looking men and even a few horrible-looking women too. The Cloak spied the young girl who smiled at him and he shot her a wink as he whispered a spell. All five guards fell into a deep sleep.

On the other side of the encampment, Knight Blade stood ready to work his part of the plan. He mounted his horse, rode out in front of the buyers and drew his sword.

"I am the strongest man in Camelot! If you want a slave, come and get me!" He rode off as fast as he could up the hill and away from the encampment. He hoped Arthur and The Cloak could handle it from there.

Just as Arthur had predicted, a large percentage of the guards followed Knight Blade to get their 'strong slave'. Idiots.

Arthur looked up to see The Cloak give him the signal. The carts were packed and now only about ten guards around to protect the buyers. None watched the slaves, so they could get away.

The Cloak saw Arthur's nod at the signal and smiled. They managed to fit all the people from the fourth cart into the third, second and first. Now all they had to do was wait for Knight Blade to come back and they'd be okay. They had planned the route he would take and he was good on a horse; Merlin just hoped he wouldn't be caught.

The Cloak began chanting. He'd put up objects around the encampment early in the morning and tied his magic to them. They would act as an amplifier but wouldn't affect Arthur or Knight Blade because they had special carvings in their armour to protect them from the spell.

Soon everyone was asleep and The Cloak and Arthur were the only two left standing.

"You could take down an entire kingdom with that spell," Arthur joked. But at The Cloak's silence he guessed that wasn't the best joke to make, given his constant accusations.

"Knight Blade should be back by now." The Cloak changed the subject and looked around only to exhale in relief as he saw Knight Blade riding alone.

"Sorry I took so long, guys. They were pretty fast on their horses," he breathed, exhausted.

"Don't worry, but we need to get out of here before they come back." Arthur made for the first cart and gave a curt head nod before starting up the hill. Knight Blade had the next but before he left he turned and smiled as Arthur vanished from sight.

"Oh my lord, Merlin, my helmet is bloody killing me." They laughed at their list of recent events and Knight Blade jumped on the back of the second horse.

"Go on back to Camelot Lancelot, I'll be right behind you-"

"Will you now?" The two turned to see two men; one they knew very well.

"Hengist." They both gritted their teeth. The Cloak cast a spell to push him back, but the man next to him deflected it. They had a sorcerer protecting them.

"Oh I'm sorry, was that supposed to do something?" Hengist cackled.

"Who's your body-guard, Hengist?" Knight Blade spat, drawing his sword only for the sorcerer to force him back into a tree where he was knocked out.

"Name's Alvarr and you're in too deep, my friend." He smiled in a horrid way which made The Cloak's skin crawl.

" **Acwele!"** The Cloak shouted and the two flew backwards. The Cloak ran over to Knight Blade, shook him and called his name for him to wake up. Unfortunately, he didn't notice that Alvarr had already recovered and was about to kill him.

" **Forbaerne! Ácw-"**

The Cloak turned around in time to see a sword jut out of Alvarr's stomach. Arthur appeared as he dropped.

"See? You do need someone by your side."Arthur smiled but The Cloak focused on the dead man in front of him. He had seen dead men before but he forgot to tell Arthur that he didn't want anyone to die. It was his fault.

"You didn't have to kill him," The Cloak sighed, putting his head in his hands.

"He would have killed you," The Prince stated.

"I thought you wanted that," The Cloak retorted, but there was little venom behind it as he smiled.

"Maybe before but now, you've shown me a new light on the use of magic." New hope lit in The Cloak's eyes. They seemed almost golden without any magic use.

"I'm glad, now come on; let's get these people back home." The Cloak walked over to Knight Blade who seemed to be stirring; he looked past the other men to see one dead body.

"Wait. Where's Hengist?" Knight Blade wondered.

"Gone again. That slime ball always seems to slip through our fingers." The Cloak threw his arms out angrily and a tree was uprooted.

"Don't worry about him; let's just get these people home," Arthur decided after seeing The Cloak's show.

"Okay, Prince Arthur." The Cloak pulled Knight Blade from his sitting position.

"Just Arthur I think that's sufficient." The three smiled. The Cloak and Knight Blade their horses. Arthur had left his up on the hill.

"Okay, Arthur." The Cloak replied.

Within three days, the party had made it home. The Cloak was glad to find the young girl knew Gwen and her name was Abigail. But most significant on his journey was that The Cloak had gained the trust and respect of the Prince of Camelot. He only wished that Merlin could have that same respect and trust.

Maybe when it was all over.


	11. Despondance

Sweat terrorised Merlin's brow as he swung at another bandit. _Whack_! He fell to the floor with a thud and Merlin raced toward Arthur and Leon who were fighting three bandits each and completely flanked.

"Every time!" Leon exclaimed smiling. "Every time we leave the castle, bandits creep up bloody everywhere." The blonde knight parried a blow and struck the bandit in the stomach. Merlin didn't like the killing but he couldn't stop it, especially after Arthur found out the Cloak disliked it.

"Well, maybe they're trying to rid us of Merlin's smell." Arthur shouted, laughing as he twirled his sword and sliced a bandit's throat with ease. Merlin had been going on excursions like these with Arthur and his knights for about six months now. He couldn't before then because of is nightly activities. He'd had to make excuses. But things had died down since Gwen's kidnapping which allowed him more time to be Merlin.

"Hey, I bathed today clotpole. They're probably trying to get to the next kingdom but your fat head is in the way," Merlin retorted as he took down another two men. All the knights he could handle a staff but none would ever assume he was The Cloak.

"I do not have a fat head, Merlin!" Arthur huffed as the knights finished off the last remaining bandits. "Tie them up and cart them back to Camelot." The knights bowed and set off to do as he asked.

"Good job out there, Merlin. Reminds me why Arthur keeps you around," Leon complimented. He strolled past and scraped the blood off his sword against a nearby rock.

Merlin grinned. He and Leon weren't friends as such but they enjoyed each other's company, much like he and Arthur. Merlin always wondered what things would be like without The Cloak. Would he be closer to the Prince? Would Gwen be dead? Would the kingdom still be standing? It was too much to ponder right now.

"Let's go, Merlin!" Arthur called him. "Wouldn't want to forget and leave you here." He Merlin turned and mounted the horse next to Arthur's. Ajax had been given to him as he was the Prince's personal manservant.

"Sorry sire, after you." Merlin moved over to make room for the Prince, who took the lead. Leon followed on with Merlin behind him.

The travel back to Camelot was quiet and peaceful. Merlin allowed himself the pleasure of smelling the sweet air seeing the green hills and white tops of the mountains. Things he took for granted in the bustling city.

They soon arrived inside the castle gates. Everyone dismounted and gave their reins to the stable boy. Across the training field, Merlin noticed Morgana and Gwen smiling at them. He gave them a quick wave which they returned while Arthur nodded.

"You should be more affectionate, I think it would make you a better person," Merlin quipped.

"Shut up, Merlin." Arthur retorted.

"Shutting up, sire." Merlin replied, still grinning happily to himself.

Throughout the rest of the afternoon, Merlin worked tirelessly through his chores. He remembered when he first came to Camelot and how difficult everything had been. Not just balancing The Cloak with Merlin but also doing his chores, especially after a bad run in with Agravaine's goons. But now Merlin had grown strong for a boy his age. He got better food than he had in Ealdor and with both his night time and day time activities he'd built up quite a bit of muscle. His fitness drew some attention from the opposite sex. That made him a tad uncomfortable so he pleasantly thanked their interests but declined them all the same.

Later in the evening, Arthur sat doing paperwork as usual. It was probably on the bandit attack Merlin thought as he trundled about the Prince's quarters finishing off his last chores.

"Merlin," Arthur called for him to come over.

"Yes Arthur, is there something you need?" Arthur only allowed him to use his first name when they were alone, or with someone they knew would be okay with the friendship between them.

"Yes, erm, thank you for being my servant for so long, Merlin. It's the longest time I've ever had one." Merlin didn't like the way this sounded. "But, I've spoken to Agravaine, begrudgingly of course." He mumbled something that sounded like 'traitorous scumbag' but Merlin didn't focus on that. He focused on the fact that he was being fired!

"Sire, please, if you're going to relieve me of my duties, just say it." Merlin did see the upside to this. It meant he could spend more time as The Cloak but he knew he would miss working for Arthur. Not that he'd tell the Prince.

"Relieve you of your what?" Arthur questioned, staring at Merlin like he was an imbecile. That was becoming more common as time passed. "No idiot, you are no longer here under compulsory service. Under the eyes of Camelot law you are now employed by me." Arthur smiled as Merlin finally took in what had been said to him.

Around a year ago, Merlin had been sentenced to work for Arthur for as long as both Agravaine and Arthur deemed necessary. Now he was actually hired as part of the castle staff. He remembered when he first began working at the castle, many of the staff gave looked on him a criminal - which he technically was but they weren't nice all the same. Now though everyone knew him and almost everyone liked him.

Suddenly the door swung open and Lancelot, Gwen, and Morgana all came through and enveloped him in a group hug. He was pretty sure Morgana pulled Arthur into it as well.

"You guys knew about this!" Merlin exclaimed. They all smiled guiltily.

"Of course they did, Merlin. We aren't all idiots," Arthur interrupted. Merlin knew he was trying not to look too happy; he did have an image to keep up.

"Just you then?" Merlin threw back before running out of the chamber. Arthur got up from his chair and raced toward him.

"Merlin!" he heard from down the hallway. He sped past servants who were all too accustomed to the manservant running around the castle.

Later that evening, Merlin entered the physicians' chambers quietly, as he noticed Gaius's sleeping form. He really should get a new bed for his mentor but he didn't have enough money right now. Forgetting that, he found his leather tunic, staff and cloak then teleported to the bell tower.

Merlin only went out by himself these days. He and Lancelot decided that because crime seemed to be dying down significantly since their little trip with the Prince. Happily, that small excursion ended in saving many lives and the eventual imprisonment of a big part of Agravaine's arsenal. That meant there was no point in both of them searching every night. Instead Merlin did it by himself every other night and most nights were quiet, just like this one.

But Merlin couldn't stop thinking about how Agravaine probably wanted the two of them to drop their guard. He'd tried so many ways to stop them but maybe he was trying patience, something he didn't seem to have much of. All thoughts fled his mind as he saw a familiar face leave the tavern with a couple of bodyguards by his side. Hengist.

Merlin followed him to a dark alleyway and smiled as he dropped silently to the ground. **"Swefe nu."** The two guards fell to the floor with a thud and Hengist jumped around in surprise. He nearly yelled out but Merlin pushed him back with his magic before he picked him up and threw him against a wall.

"What are you doing so out in the open? What is Agravaine planning?" Merlin grit his teeth.

"Who, me? I was just out for a walk. As far as Agravaine is concerned, I'm sure he wouldn't bother with a common man such as myself." Merlin had seen plenty of people play this game before. Hengist wasn't worth his time right now.

"I'm watching you, Hengist." The Cloak warned but before he was able to leave, Hengist spoke.

"Oh no, Merlin, we're watching you. I think you'll find Agravaine isn't planning anything anymore." He smiled and moved into the shadows leaving Merlin confused and worried.

Merlin teleported back into his room and took off his cloak, unbuttoned his tunic and hid his things under his bed. Merlin felt rather hungry; in his hurry he hadn't stopped to have dinner. He opened the door to the main chamber and saw Gaius still sleeping. Merlin turned, and being a clumsy idiot, knocked over a glass bottle. But as he turned he saw Gaius hadn't even stirred. Merlin took a few slices of bread and cheese and went back to his room to eat and hopefully not wake Gaius in the process.

That night Merlin slept with his eyes open, thinking about what Hengist had said to him. He couldn't begin to fathom what it could be but he could talk it out with Gaius tomorrow; he'd know. He'd probably call over Lance and Gwen too. This could be Agravaine's final plan to rid Camelot of The Cloak, Knight Blade and their associates.

The next morning, Merlin woke up as he always did and changed into his regular attire before leaving to the main chamber. Oddly, Gaius still lay in bed. Merlin also noticed that his robes were still folded from yesterday morning after they'd been washed. He tip-toed over to his mentor's bed and shook it only to find Gaius missing. Under the blanket he found a stack of pillows and blankets in a human-like shape. Gaius had been taken.

Merlin sped out of the chamber and ran toward The Rising Sun; Lancelot would know what to do. He barged in, not knocking as per usual.

"Merlin-"

"Gaius has been taken, Lancelot, we need to find him!" Merlin interrupted.

"What do you mean he's been taken?" Lancelot questioned, confused.

"I mean Gaius was sleeping when I woke up, which never happens, and when I went to wake him he wasn't there. It was just pillows and blankets." Merlin was frantic; he had no idea what to do.

"Was there any signs of a struggle?" Lancelot asked, still sceptical.

"No I don't think so but his robes were still folded neatly from yesterday morning which means he hasn't been in Camelot for an entire day." Merlin had no idea how Lance could be so calm. His only father figure had been taken from right under his nose.

"Okay, let's go." Merlin used magic to teleport out, knowing Lance would meet him outside the castle. He collected his things, donned his cloak and grabbed his staff before teleporting into the stable. He rode out using a perception filter on himself and his horse to go unnoticed.

As the two rode out into the woods to find Gaius, Arthur and Morgana stood by the training field talking about this and that. They generally didn't have much time together what with the hectic royal schedules they must complete. At this moment though, Agravaine decided that he needed to talk to them. Luckily, they'd been able to keep the truth from him that they knew who he really was.

"Ah, good morning, Arthur, and hello to you too Morgana, you look as radiant as always." His false kindness dripped through his dry lips like poison.

"Good morning, Uncle." Arthur smiled falsely but Agravaine hadn't caught on to his dishonesty.

"Thank you, Lord Agravaine." Morgana tried to smile as sweetly as possible; she was well versed at faking her emotions. As a princess she'd had more than a few encounters with ardent Princes who weren't even worth her gaze.

"Uther wishes to speak with you both in ten minutes in the council chambers. He expects you promptly. Apparently, it's important." Agravaine left as quickly as he'd come and the siblings turned to each other.

"What do we do, Arthur?" Morgana exclaimed. "We can't go - it's clearly a trap!" Arthur led her into the castle and into one of the spare chambers.

"Would you shut it Morgana? You'll get us found out and he'll definitely kill us," Arthur whispered, clearly frustrated. "We have to go anyway; if we don't he'll know we suspect something is off."

"How do we know he isn't already fully aware of that fact?" Morgana brought up a good but annoying point. They had to go; it might be something important and not a trap.

In the council chambers, Agravaine smiled as he sprawled on the King's throne. He looked over at Hengist who had a smirk of his own. This would be his moment.

"Hengist," Agravaine called.

"Yes sir," he replied formally, adding a salute for good measure.

"Are the men ready?" At Hengist's nod, he grinned. "Arthur will wish he had pushed that idea about the guards further all those months ago…and so will The Cloak." Hengist left and Agravaine waited. He prepared himself to forget all of what had occurred due to the pesky vigilantes; they would be dealt with today.

Back in the woods, Merlin and Lance had discovered a trail and pushed their horses to the limit in order to get to the end as fast as possible. Both had the feeling this could be part of a bigger plan. They hadn't forgotten a year of fighting just because things got quieter in Camelot.

They suddenly came to a clearing. Gaius was tied to a post in the middle, bleeding but clearly breathing. He appeared unguarded and as far as Merlin could see – which was far because of his magic – no one was near them.

"It's completely clear." Merlin turned to Lance warily.

"How can they set a trap if there's no one to fetch us?" Agravaine would want them both brought to him for the satisfaction of killing them himself.

"I don't know, Lancelot, but we need to free Gaius and get back. Something isn't right here." Both Lancelot and Merlin slowly treaded out of the brush and into the clearing.

Little did they know something else was watching them...

In the castle, the siblings took one last look at each other before taking deep breath and stepping into the council chambers. They strode in with every regal grace and confidence afforded to them and they barely raised an eyebrow at Agravaine, who was sprawled across the King's throne.

The room was silent and still. Agravaine smirked and they knew then he'd always known from the moment they were captured almost four months ago - he had been made. Arthur unsheathed his sword and ran at Agravaine, who didn't even look his way. However, he did wave his arm in a gesturing motion making Arthur stop in his tracks. Knights Arthur had trained with for about five years, marched into the room.

They all held crossbows and Arthur knew he had no choice but to surrender. He dropped his sword and as it clattered to the floor, Arthur prayed for The Cloak.

"Well, that was very anti-climactic," Agravaine stated obviously, chuckling away to himself. "I thought you would have figured I would have some form of protection."

"You would, you were always a coward. Didn't even have the guts to do what Tristan had all those years ago, although he was a better fighter than you and look what happened-"

 _SMACK_! Agravaine backhanded Morgana round the side of the cheek.

"You will not speak of me and my family with such disrespect!" he bellowed as Arthur tried to grab for him only to be pulled back by the guards. Morgana held back her tears well, unwilling to give Agravaine the satisfaction of seeing them.

"You sicken me, Agravaine, five years you were part of our family, five years!" Arthur shouted ferociously at the Lord.

"Yes, five years I managed to fool you idiots. Your father stands on the edge of the battlements, another word or move out of line and he will fall to his death," he stated.

"What is it you want from us, Agravaine?" Morgana managed to choke out, only losing a few tears from her emerald eyes. She watched in disgust as he moved over to the decanter.

"It is simple, my dear Morgana. I want you both to relinquish your titles and your claims to the throne," he said with an evil smirk, pouring himself a glass of red wine.

"If the King is alive, you still cannot claim, it doesn't matter whether we relinquish our titles or not," Arthur spoke in defiance as he looked Agravaine in the eyes.

"Oh didn't I mention? He has already relinquished his title to me. The council witnessed it not twenty minutes before you walked in." Agravaine smiled sadistically as he drank from his goblet. Arthur tried to get up and charge but he was hit on the head with the pommel of a sword and fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, in the forest, Merlin and Lancelot helped Gaius out of his bindings and released him from the gag. He told the story of how he was captured and taken here; he'd heard it was a diversion. The three looked at each other warily then back to the enormous castle behind them.

"Agravaine," Merlin spat through gritted teeth.

"Yes, young warlock, he has your friends and will surely kill the King as well." A familiar voice roared from the heavens and Merlin's eyes bulged as he spied a dragon flying towards them.

"Kilgharrah?" Merlin wondered. It had been months since he'd heard anything from the voice in his head, since he'd almost died. At least he knew now hy his voice was so deep.

"Yes, young warlock, I am a dragon." The bronze beast settled in the clearing and eyed the three of them. Not in a suspicious way, more interested in their movement and thought.

"But – but – you're all – you're all supposed to be extinct…" Lancelot stepped back with utter surprise.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, noble one; I see courage did not come with you that day, what a different future that would pan out to be." The large beast chuckled; the vibrations were almost powerful enough to move the ground. The three exchanged confused glances but quickly decided they didn't need to know what any of that meant.

"What do you suggest we do then, Kilgharrah? We cannot let Uther die or Arthur and Morgana be murdered by that maniac." The dragon seemed to have little regard for his plea but did not stop considering it anyhow.

"Let Uther die, young warlock, he poses a great threat to the future of Camelot. But the young witch has yet to solidify her destiny and Arthur is most important. Not just Camelot but all kingdoms. They both must be saved." Kilgharrah stared at Merlin as if subliminally suggesting him to take his advice.

"Why does Uther pose a threat?" Gaius spoke for the first time.

"He opposes magic and neither his children nor The Cloak will convince him otherwise. Once he stirs from the spell he has been put under then he will hit back at magic with a vigour that we haven't seen since the beginning of the great purge." Merlin turned to Gaius who seemed to look uncharacteristically terrified of that prospect.

"I will not let him die for things he may do; you do not know if that is what will happen." Merlin stepped forward summoning all the power he could into his voice against the towering, ancient dragon.

"Then what of the things he has done, young warlock? He has wiped out magic users with the swipe of his hand! He has drained the world of magic. Its most sacred places are nothing but rubble and dust, littered with those who practiced magic." Kilgharrah let out a mighty roar and filled the sky with fire in his extreme anger.

"If we kill him, Kilgharrah, we are no better than he. We must show compassion where he shows a cold heart, peace where he shows violence, and welcome where he shows banishment. I will save him and everyone in that castle and you will take us there." The two stared intensely at each other, neither wavering and neither Gaius nor Lance wanted to interrupt this fiery feud between two beings of magic.

"I, Arthur Pendragon, hereby relinquish any and all titles and claim I have to the throne of Camelot. I am no longer heir to the throne nor am I Prince of this realm," Arthur finished his sentence, dropped to the ground and stared angrily at Agravaine. Morgana could tell that if he ever had the chance Arthur would kill Agravaine with no second thought and she would do the same.

"It is your turn now, Princess." The devilish man smiled and Morgana felt ready to slap it off him. But if she didn't comply her father would surely die and maybe even her brother too. She couldn't let that happen.

"I, Morgana Pendragon, hereby relinquish any and all titles and claim I have to the throne of Camelot. I am no longer heir to the throne nor am I Princess of this realm." She too dropped to the floor and held onto her brother as streams of tears began to cascade down her cheeks.

"It only took me five years to get to this point. Now I'm here I may tear up." He grinned sarcastically as he beckoned for the doors to be opened. "Bring me Geoffrey of Monmouth." The two royals knew this would be the end of the Pendragon lineage.

The three landed just outside the gates of Camelot. It was late at night and the streets were empty of all life. As they got off Kilgharrah he snorted something which sounded something like 'I'm not a horse.' But they were still recovering from actually riding on a real live dragon.

"Listen to me, young warlock, if you still decide to save them all you may have to pay dire consequences yourself. Are you prepared for it?" The dragon's piercing gaze concentrated on the young boy in front of him.

"I am, Kilgharrah," Merlin replied. The dragon smiled and flew away, probably to wherever it was he dwelled. Some sort of cave, Merlin thought.

"So where are we going?" Gaius inquired, his eyebrow raised abnormally high.

"Get back to your chambers. I suspect there may be injured if this truly is Agravaine's final move. It would not surprise me if things got bloody." The physician nodded his head and moved toward the castle gates.

"What about us?" Lancelot asked. Merlin just chuckled before lifting his hood over his head. He grabbed hold of Lancelot, who pulled his visor down. Merlin whispered the familiar teleportation spell and wind gathered around them as they disappeared into thin air.

When the winds cleared, they were in the council chambers with Arthur, Morgana, Geoffrey the genealogist, Hengist and Agravaine. They also spotted many knights whom they assumed were traitors working for Agravaine.

"Oh look who it is. It's The Cloak and his sidekick, Knight Blade. Have you come to witness my crowning?" Agravaine teased. "Surround them." The knights surrounded them both, their swords out, and raised to their throats.

" **Astríce!"** All of them flew back the entire length of the room in every direction. "Please tell me you didn't expect that to work." The Cloak smiled form under his hood.

"No I didn't actually, which is why Uther is on the battlements ready to jump." Merlin could see from the distressed look on Arthur and Morgana's faces that he wasn't bluffing. "Come on, I know you won't risk his life. Just surrender." The Cloak and Knight Blade traded glances before dropping their weapons and holding their hands up above their head.

The Cloak, Knight Blade, Arthur and Morgana all knelt in front of Agravaine. The four took a moment to look at each other properly.

"Well look at this." Agravaine stood above them all, hands at his sides, smirking at their misfortune. "You all have given me trouble and now I have you. It would've been nice to get that young servant of yours, Morgana, and the physician but that's going to look awfully suspicious now. Oh well, I'll kill them later." The Cloak gritted his teeth together as his eyes glowed gold and the ropes that bound him loosened.

"The citadel will become the biggest base of slave trade operations in the five kingdoms," Hengist interrupted. By the following silence, Merlin figured that Agravaine wouldn't respond very well.

"Ah Hengist, about that small detail….ahaha…um how do I say this without hurting your feelings? Oh, kill him." A knight to his left stuck a sword through Hengist's chest and the four grimaced as the sword slid back out.

"That wasn't necessary," The Cloak whispered.

"Well...I guess you're going to hate this next bit then." Agravaine strolled back over to the throne and stared at them one by one. "In an hour three things will happen. I will be king, you will all be dead and my men will kill everyone in Camelot." Arthur and Morgana looked inquisitively at the two vigilantes. "This is my final hour!"

"Why in an hour, Agravaine?" Morgana asked. "Why not do all of that right now?" Arthur had gone bug-eyed and Merlin and Lance weren't too far behind.

"Secrets, my dear, let us just say that I like myself a prestigious audience." He chuckled and sipped once more from his goblet. "Anyway, while we're here we might as well unmask these two vigilantes." Agravaine stormed over to the two vigilantes. Arthur and Morgana stared at the Cloak and his compatriot both intrigued and scared to find them out. Lance took one hard look at Merlin.

Agravaine was three steps away… two steps away…one step away…


	12. Castles On The Land

**_Last time…_**

 _Agravaine was three steps away… two steps away…one step away…_

Before Agravaine could reach out and grab Merlin's hood he broke the rope that bound him and Lancelot. They both ran toward the window, acutely aware of the first time they'd done this. They jumped through the stained glass window and Merlin teleported them back into the physician's chambers before they hit the ground.

"Merlin? Lancelot?" Merlin looked up to see Gaius and Gwen seated at the table.

"Hi," they replied. Gwen ran over to help them both up.

"What happened?" Gaius asked. They recounted all that had taken place. Everything from the moment they had to surrender, to the king standing on the battlements and the final plan due to begin in an hour.

"Well I think the question should be, who is he waiting for?" Gaius prompted, thinking hard on the matter.

"No, Gaius, we need to think of a way to save the people of Camelot as well as Arthur, Morgana and Uther. I'm willing to bet this is why he wanted the soldiers to encircle the lower town all those months ago." The warlock was worried. Terrified, in fact. There didn't seem to be a viable way for him to save everyone. He couldn't be in two places at once!

"I think we should consider who he is waiting for more closely, Merlin. They might be dangerous-"

"Gaius, I can handle whoever walks into Camelot. I need to save the people and I need to do it fast!" Merlin shouted angrily before he teleported away, leaving the three of them behind.

"He didn't mean that," Lance told Gaius as he took off his armour. "He's just annoyed that he can't fix the problem right now." Lancelot smiled as if he knew they'd be okay.

"I'll find him," Gwen said before leaving the chambers and running toward where she knew he'd be.

Meanwhile, in the council chambers, Agravaine angrily paced up and down the hall. The two siblings watched him carefully, questions above questions towering high in their minds.

"How could you let them get away?" he shouted at his men, who took a clear step back. "Get out of my sight!" he bellowed and they all sprinted out of the chamber.

"Can't get the staff these days," Arthur quipped to his uncle.

"You know what?" Agravaine began. "Since this is your last hour on this world, I'll let you spend it with your father." He shooed some soldiers off who came back with the King, who still looked like an emotionless zombie.

The King was forced to kneel beside his children yet he did not glance their way. He stared toward Agravaine like the lapdog their uncle had turned him into.

"Release him from the enchantment!" Arthur barked. Agravaine strolled over to the once great Uther Pendragon and ripped the pendant from around his neck. The constant red hue dispersed until it went black.

"Ugh." Uther swayed a little even on his knees. "Where am I?" Uther looked up and gasped at the sight of his children and brother-in-law. They looked five years older at least!

"Father? Are you alright?" His daughter, she looked so mature now. A woman in her own right.

"No, he isn't." Agravaine laughed. In an instant, he came around to punch the King straight in the jaw. "It's been five years, Uther, five years of your life you will not remember but you will remember today. Today your kingdom falls and your family dies." Uther stared in shock at the evil form in front of him.

How could he have missed five years of his life?

Gwen knew Merlin would be on top of the bell tower. Luckily Agravaine wouldn't put his plan into action until he had this "someone" to watch him do it. For the life of her, Gwen couldn't work out who it could be. No one other than Hengist was closely connected to Agravaine and Hengist was dead now.

The young maid - servant stared up at the bell tower. She knew he was there but that damned perception filter kept her from really seeing him. Her vision kept wandering off to the side or above or below him. It was very annoying once you realised what was happening. Suddenly, two hands grabbed her waist and teleported in a swirl of wind and leaves from the ground.

"You bring too much attention here, Gwen, people will begin to see me and that won't do at all," he murmured which was unusual for him.

Gwen peered over the edge and gasped at how high up they were. Merlin stayed close to make sure she didn't do something stupid. He motioned for her to sit; they sat in silence on the edge with their legs dangling in the air. The maidservant held onto him as tightly as she could for fear of falling.

"I remember the last time you held me like this." He smiled at her coyly but chuckled light-heartedly all the same. They were comfortable being friends, they weren't destined to be together.

"There is no use reminiscing on what was, Merlin. We must look forward and decide what to do about our predicament." Sometimes Merlin felt she was the wisest person in Camelot. But she still sped around the castle, tripping and stumbling over both objects and words. He couldn't have asked for a better friend.

"Well, Agravaine has the royals, he has a big portion of the army on his side ready to slaughter everyone, and he will be king. I've got about forty minutes to come up with some sort of plan to prevent at least two of those things happening." Merlin's jaw clenched as he thought about the sacrifices he would have to make, maybe this is what the dragon had been talking about?

"You still act as if you are alone in this world." Gwen smiled. Merlin stared at her in confusion from under the hood he had worn for almost a year. He liked to think that a glimpse of the cloak itself gave people strength and hope. But after this fight he didn't think he would be wearing it again.

"I know I have you, Lancelot and Gaius but I don't think that only we four can take on an army like this one." Gwen smiled again and Merlin simply waited for her wise comment.

"We are not alone; you have many friends and the town's people would lay their lives down for you." She grinned at him as his eyes lit up to put the pieces together.

"Gwennie, you genius!" He kissed her on the cheek before he jumped and teleported away.

The maidservant sat for a moment, simply happy she could help until she realised that Merlin had left her on the bell tower with no way down.

"MER-" she stopped herself quickly.

"Please do tell the entire town who I am, Gwen." He laughed as he teleported her back into the physicians' chambers.

"Shut up and save the kingdom already." Gwen pushed him off of her.

"So you have a plan?" Lancelot stood up, sheathing his sword.

"Of course I do. First you need to buy some time." Merlin began telling them the plan. He explained quickly because they only had 30 minutes left before Agravaine put _his_ plan into action.

"Agravaine you traitorous, low life scum of a man! How dare you betray me like this?" Uther bellowed from where he knelt, his face red with anger but even Arthur could see how terrified he was.

"Oh shut up, Uther. You do go on a bit, don't you? I think I did the entire kingdom a favour by enchanting you." He chuckled evilly. "Anyway, The Cloak has about 25 minutes before I can put my plan into action. I hope Merlin has found somewhere to hide but he's never too far from danger." Another chuckle crawled out of poisoned lips.

"If you've done anything to him I swear I'll hurt you!" Arthur warned the Lord who towered above him.

"Please, Arthur, you barely know the boy, you hardly see him in the day." Agravaine retorted back. "I wonder where he does go." A clearly rhetorical statement, Arthur noted.

"What do you know, Agravaine?" Morgana asked suspiciously.

"Oh just that Merlin is-"

Just that moment Knight Blade stormed into the council chambers with a small platoon at his back. The soldiers controlled by Agravaine began attacking and Knight Blade led the way. The Cloak had managed to convince them not to kill but to capture those who opposed the crown. They would hang anyway but at least it would be legal and fair.

In the chaos, Arthur, Morgana and Uther got up from where they stood and ran to the nearest soldier on their side; Leon.

"Leon, thank God you weren't part of Agravaine's plan. I don't know what I'd do." Arthur smiled as he was cut loose from the rope. He, Morgana and Uther picked up swords and hacked straight into the crowd, side by side with Knight Blade. But where was The Cloak?

Agravaine stood back and watched his soldiers get slaughtered. It hardly bothered him as he watched the once powerful king fight with his children. He grinned as he watched his own knights line up on the balconies, armed with cross bows. One by one each soldier dropped their weapon as they realised they were beaten.

"Well that was unexpected, but did you really think I wouldn't have planned for something like this?" The lord showed mock hurt as he strolled around them all. "Did you just waltz in here to defeat me with nothing but forty-odd men who stayed loyal to the crown? It seems The Cloak has abandoned you also," Agravaine spied.

"Always so blind, Agravaine," Knight Blade replied.

"Blind?" The lord eyed Knight Blade. "What do you mean?" The vigilante only laughed as he stood up.

"I would give my life to help him." Knight Blade stood smiling up at the lord. He was up to something, he just knew it.

"You see, Agravaine. I've been fighting you with The Cloak for almost a year now and if I've learnt anything from you, from Hengist, from that sorcerer you sent after us last month, from the bandits and the kidnappers. The one thing I've learnt from all of that, compiled into one thing, as in-"

"Please do take your time, you're only wasting time." Agravaine smiled.

"See that's it isn't it? You're so thick. Thick, thick thickos from thickland, Thickania. Don't you see? We have you right where we want you; you have no one around you, just the knights up there and the army out there. You're alone and you've let me use about fifteen minutes with the whole attack and the talking and what have you." Lancelot stood in the middle of the chamber with a big smile on his face and Agravaine started to get very, very worried.

"What are you doing?" Morgana asked just as confused as everyone else.

"Well, I believe it's called buying time…"

Suddenly, there was a ruckus on the balcony and Agravaine watched his men fall one by one. He couldn't see who the shapes were that were cutting through his knights but he began to feel scared.

"Hello you lot!" A man with long brown hair sliced through a knight before sliding down one of the poles holding up the balcony. They recognised the man from when Gwen was taken. He had fought for their food.

Another two shapes moved through the other side of the balcony and Agravaine gritted his teeth as they were quickly defeated as well.

He gasped as he saw Gwen and her father Tom the Blacksmith.. Two peasants taking down his guards? Impossible. They were nothing.

"Gwen!" Morgana shouted as they both slid down the poles. "Guess those secret lessons with me worked then." Of course Morgana would teach her maidservant such things. Fools the lot of them.

"Name's Gwaine." He shook hands with Arthur and Morgana who picked up their swords and pointed them at Agravaine. "The Cloak found me and asked me to give him a hand. I was pretty bored so I agreed."

"Well then you were a fool. You have done nothing, achieved nothing and in five minutes you will be nothing as will everyone in the lower town. They'll be slaughtered like cattle." Arthur and Morgana suddenly looked very worried again but Gwaine didn't seem to be very bothered by the prospect.

"You and what army, Agravaine?" The Cloak appeared out of thin air with a druid girl at his side. He gestured to the lower town and he watched as cloaks of red felled all of his soldiers. His eyes gazed outwards to see the guards weren't killed. First mistake he thought but hid his smile.

"The druids do not kill," she had a sickeningly sweet voice, "they heal, and those soldiers whom you paid to betray the crown will be thrown in the dungeon and tried in a court. Kings kill, not druids."

"You've lost, Agravaine." The Cloak stood straight and towered over him and Agravaine could just about see Merlin's blue irises.

"You forget who you are. A man with a heart, you see this is why I'm blessed that I care for no one. No one can actually black-mail me for I care for no one but myself." The Cloak watched him carefully and wondered what he was up to.

"You've lost," The Cloak said more forcefully than perhaps needed.

"Ah, I may do but you will lose something; I guarantee it." Merlin's eyes widened as Agravaine looked up and behind him. Merlin turned to see an arrow racing towards him, he didn't have time to react, he could've stopped it but instead Freya pushed him.

Merlin hit the floor. His head ached and as his hand came away from his forehead it trickled with blood. He turned toward Freya but blood covered her where the arrow had hit her heart.

His lips began to tremble as Agravaine laughed maniacally. Tears stung Merlin's eyes as her hand came up to feel his face. He couldn't close his eyes to her touch for fear that when he opened them she would be gone. There was no saving her; all of Gaius's teachings told him this that even with magic she couldn't be saved.

It was his fault.

He smiled as Freya wiped away his tears as she began to pass. He would be strong before she passed fully he was glad he'd decided to go and find her in Nemeth and convince her clan to join him in the fight against Agravaine.

"Live well, Merlin," she breathed before her eyes became vacant and her magic was lost to the earth.

" **In sibbe gerest** , Freya," he replied.

Merlin stood, eyes hard. They glowed gold for a second and a crack was heard from the balcony as the guard fell on the spot. He walked slowly towards Agravaine who had stopped laughing after Merlin killed the guard. Merlin felt Morgause's presence, but she quickly disappeared after he used his magic to force her away by sheer will.

"That was not necessary," he spoke slowly and clearly, his voice still disguised.

Merlin grabbed Agravaine by the neck and held him high above his own head. His eyes glowed gold as Agravaine screamed and wailed. Smoke began to rise from Agravaine's back. It lasted five minutes and no one dared interrupt the screaming and wailing coupled with The Cloak's sudden change in persona.

At last he dropped him. He was still alive but he trembled from the pain.

"What have you done to me?" Agravaine murmured. The entire hall was quiet; no one made a sound as The Cloak bent down in front of him.

"I have engraved the names of those you have innocently killed in your plight. You will be confined to your jail cell and if you try to escape then it won't matter because someone will see, someone will recognise a name and they will kill you anyway." The Cloak spoke with a darkness never heard before in his voice and even Lancelot was very wary of his partner's actions.

"Why not kill me?" Agravaine asked in confusion.

"Because that would be letting you off easy." The Cloak whispered some words of enchantment and put Agravaine to sleep where he sat.

The Cloak turned to those behind him and took a deep breath. He gazed upon Freya's lifeless body and with a wave of his hand she was clean, there was no blood and it was almost like she was alive…almost.

"She did not die in vain." Arthur spoke through the silence. The Cloak looked up and under the hood a faint smile could be seen as he picked up Freya and turned away from them.

"Hunt those who are still connected with Agravaine. Trust no one but those at your side now. Disassemble his syndicate and build a new Camelot, a better Camelot."

Just like that, he disappeared…

This was the last time anyone would ever see The Cloak but it was not the end for Merlin and his journey to become the true hero.


	13. Epilogue

Beyond the rolling hills and the white tipped mountains, beyond the gaze of the great sorcerer that lived in the shadows of Camelot, just out of reach of the Knight's sword which would unite Albion and unpredicted by the witch's dreams was a lair.

"That was disappointing, I so wanted to see my son again but Agravaine just had to fail me." A feminine voice broke out into the darkness as she gazed into her scrying bowl.

"Why can you not do so now? You do not need Agravaine to take Camelot!" Morgause stepped out of the shadows and moved to peer into the scrying bowl as well.

"My son forced you away by the sheer want of not wanting to deal with you; you underestimate his power as does he and those around him." The woman hissed back.

"What do you propose we do?" Morgause prompted eyeing up her mistress.

"A new strategy must be made." She replied.

"It will be done Nimueh." Morgause disappeared in a swirl of wind and gravel.

"Soon Merlin, soon we will meet. We will do great things together, my son…"


End file.
